Chapter 16 - Committees
Publications Committee
The Publications Committee,
established by standing order 22, also normally
sits as a joint committee with its House of Representatives counterpart. The
committee has seven members but there are no formal conditions attaching to the
representation of government and non-government senators.
The committee makes recommendations to the Senate on the printing of
documents presented to the Senate and which have not already been ordered to be
printed. An order to print a
document ensures its inclusion in the series of parliamentary papers; all
documents presented to the Senate are ordered to be published (SO 167). It is usual
upon the presentation of committee reports to the Senate for a motion to be
moved that the report be printed. The motion is not commonly moved when other
documents such as petitions, government documents, delegation reports or
reports of the Auditor-General are presented, and it is these which are
considered by the Publications Committee at regular meetings in accordance with
guidelines determined by the committee. When the Publications Committee reports
to the Senate, recommending the printing of certain documents, a motion is
moved, by leave, that the report be adopted (leave is required for a motion
that would otherwise require notice to be given). The motion may be amended;
for example, to provide for the printing of a document not recommended for
printing by the committee.
When sitting as a joint committee with the Publications Committee of
the House of Representatives, the committee has the following additional
powers:
-
to inquire into and report
on the printing, publication and distribution of parliamentary and government
publications and on such related matters as are referred to it by the relevant
Minister; and
-
to send for persons and
documents. (SO 22(3))
This additional
role of the joint committee arose from recommendations of the Joint Select
Committee on Parliamentary and Government Publications (PP 32/1964-6)
which were adopted in 1970. The investigatory function is invoked when the
committee considers matters relating to Commonwealth publishing. The committee
has undertaken inquiries under this function and presented several reports.
In 1993 the committee criticised the presentation of large numbers of annual
reports of departments and agencies in the last sitting week before the end of
the year. The basis for this criticism was that:
[t]he
Committee believes that this situation diminishes Parliament’s role in ensuring
the accountability of these organisations through their annual reports to
Parliament by reducing the opportunity for Members and Senators to critically
review and debate matters contained in the reports. (27th report, 4/5/1993, J.36)
Requirements for annual reports stipulate 31 October as the
deadline for tabling. The requirements were part of the revision of
accountability documentation stemming from the altered Budget timetable
introduced in 1994 and provided under the Public Service Act 1999 (see
below, Conduct of inquiries, Referral of matters to committees, Estimates).
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