Many argue that the Australian Constitution urgently needs to be renewed, refashioned and reworked to meet the aspirations and needs of contemporary Australians. Issues covered in this 2002 volume of Labor Essays include:

• a bill of rights
• social justice and exclusion in the constitution
• a treaty with indigenous people
• the courts and the separation of powers
• a new direction for an Australian Republic
• the influence of financial power in elections
• rethinking federalism and the cultural symbolism for a republic.

Edited by Glenn Patmore from the University of Melbourne.