Description

New Zealand is a democratic constitutional monarchy, one of Queen Elizabeth II's 16 realms. This book provides a comprehensive account of how the Queen, the Governor-General, and the Crown interact with democratically elected leaders under New Zealand's unwritten constitution. The authors explain how these islands in the South Pacific were first brought within Queen Victoria's dominions, the arrangements made for their future government, and how those arrangements developed over time. They discuss the responsibilities of, and interactions between, the key office-holders and the parliamentary democracy that New Zealanders take for granted, which conceals the country's ultimate constitutional underpinnings in the monarchy. Understanding the roles of the Queen, the Governor-General, and the Crown will be critical as New Zealanders look forward to debates about the possibility of becoming a republic.