House of Representatives of Fiji

The House of Representatives was the lower chamber of Fiji's Parliament from 1970 to 2006. It was the more powerful of the two chambers; it alone had the power to initiate legislation (the Senate, by contrast, could amend or veto most legislation, but could not initiate it). The House of Representatives also had much greater jurisdiction over financial bills; the Senate could not amend them, although it might veto them. Except in the case of amendments to the Constitution, over which a veto of the Senate was absolute, the House of Representatives might override a Senatorial veto by passing the same bill a second time, in the parliamentary session immediately following the one in which it was rejected by the Senate, after a minimum period of six months.

Also, the Prime Minister and Cabinet were required to retain the confidence of a majority of the House of Representatives to remain in office.

The House of Representatives was suspended by the 2006 military coup. The 2013 Constitution abolished it and replaced it with a single chamber Parliament.


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