Annual Report 2001–02
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Group 3 > Output 3.3
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Output Group 3: Member's Services
3.3 Facilities and services
| Provision of facilities and services in accordance with
administrative decisions |
Accommodation services
Plans were prepared prior to the federal election to assist those 10 members
not contesting the election to move their belongings. Plans were also prepared
to coordinate the refurbishment of the suites vacated by them. Those plans were
successfully implemented within appropriate time frames. Painting and repairs
commenced as soon as the election had been called.
A number of building changes became necessary to make accommodation available
for an additional two members. Those changes involved relocating departmental
staff from areas required for members. In all, 115 internal moves were
completed in time for the first sitting of the Fortieth Parliament.
Following the election and the announcement of the Ministry a number
of additional building changes were made to provide suitable accommodation
for additional Parliamentary Secretaries. The changes were all completed
prior to 30 December 2001.
Office services
Of the 363 emergency maintenance requests received, 99.9 per cent were processed
within five minutes. Priorities for the movement and supply of furniture were
set in consultation with our clients and in consideration of our resources.
Our goals were met in 99.9 per cent of cases, with furniture moved and relocated
to the clients satisfaction.
During the financial year, 487 requests for telephone support including relocation,
installation or reprogramming were actioned. Of those, 41 were faults that
were reported within five minutes to the Telephone Support Section and actioned
within 45 minutes as agreed to by telephone support officers. Immediately after
the election, 300 handsets and 81 facsimile machines were relocated during an
eight-day period.
The Serjeant-at-Arms Office processed 956 applications for access to suites
to enable maintenance staff to enter suites in the House of Representatives
wing. An additional 23 multiple requests (requests involving all members suites)
for access for maintenance were coordinated by the Serjeant-at-Arms Office.
Of the 722 applications, 173 were made in the 10 working days following the
election.
Savings were achieved through reductions in messenger staffing, furniture provision
and maintenance support. Under the new arrangements, fewer messengers provide
service in non-sitting weeks. Non-ongoing staff are engaged mainly in sitting
weeks, when requirements are heavier. Minor maintenance works and furniture
movements are now conducted by a part-time non-ongoing staff member. Those changes,
which were implemented without changes in service levels, resulted in significant
savings.
Information technology services
Information technology infrastructure and centralised services are provided
to members by the Department of the Parliamentary Reporting Staff, while this
output provides additional information technology equipment and support to meet
the specific requirements of members. During the financial year the department
increased the number of information technology workstations provided to members
and assisted members with using and maintaining equipment provided by other
departments (typically laptops and portable devices). Those initiatives were
well received by members as they improved their capacity to undertake their
parliamentary duties.
Members laptop computers were due to be upgraded during the financial year.
Evaluations were conducted and a smaller, lighter laptop was found suitable
for members use while travelling or in the Chamber. A rollout of those laptops
commenced in June.
Other hardware upgrades occurred in preparation for the introduction of a new
platform for the parliamentary network. Memory in personal computers was upgraded
and all office printers were replaced.
Members personalised letterhead stationery
The departments 19992000 and 200001 annual reports identified a costly duplication
of effort by the department and the Department of Finance and Administration
(DoFA) in relation to administering members entitlements to personalised letterhead
stationery.
In December 2001 DoFA made a policy change, which came into effect in January
2002, specifying a limit on the personalised letterhead stationery entitlement
of each member. That meant that joint responsibility for administering the entitlement
could not be sustained without a major change in the systems supporting the
process. Therefore, by agreement between the Speaker and the Special Minister
of State, the department passed all responsibility for administering the entitlement
to DoFA from 25 January 2002.
Printing services
The department maintains an in-house printing centre primarily to print documents
that are needed within short time frames for the efficient running of the House.
The print room output was in the order of 11.5 million impressions. Of those,
5.3 million impressions were printed for members as part of their in-house printing
allowances. Those figures represent a significant decrease in the number of
impressions compared with the previous financial year, as a result of the election
break, when no printing work was done for members and the parliamentary committees
were in recess.
In line with recommendations from the print architecture review conducted in
1999, further investigative work was conducted in relation to the feasibility
of using printing multifunction devices. A number of the devices were installed
in members and departmental offices, leading to workflow benefits and a reduction
in the range of consumables required.
Printing arrangements were reviewed in December 2001. As a result, various
reforms are being pursued, including improvements to printing practices and
a restructuring of staffing arrangements.
The software (Digipath) and hardware used in the pre-press stages of
printing were upgraded and relevant training was conducted for printing
and publishing staff. The upgrade has increased the speed with which documents
can be processed in the publishing area. Digipath can now import a wider
range of file formats, and the new high-speed scanners are less prone
to misfeed, and process work at a faster rate, than those they replaced.
The scanners are colour enabled, which allows colour scanning to A3 size.
A new offline collator was installed in the basement print room, improving
the quality of the finished printing products and the workflow in the
print room.
Messenger services
The messengers circulated documents, provided the captioning service for the
in-house television feed, assisted members with setting up their laptops in
the Chamber and provided other services to assist members while in the Chamber
or Main Committee.
Targets for timeliness and efficiency for the messenger service are detailed
in the departments service charters. No complaints were received during 200102,
indicating that the service successfully met the needs of members. Anecdotal
evidence from members indicated their satisfaction with the services provided.
Information about members services
Information provided to the public via the departments internet site is now
updated in a more timely manner than in the past. We are also now able to provide
address labels for members Parliament House and electorate addresses to facilitate
more effective public access to members.
Security services
During the reporting period security resources were devoted to maintaining
operational capabilities commensurate with prevailing threat levels and risk
management principles. The emphasis was on balancing the security needs of members
with the need to ensure the Parliament remained accessible. Informal feedback
from members indicated their general satisfaction that the balance was appropriate
and that they were able to carry out their parliamentary duties in security
and safety.
The terrorist incidents which occurred in the United States on 11 September
2001 had a very significant impact on the outputs provision of security facilities
and services, challenging the Parliamentary Security Service to maintain its
performance under great pressure. To ensure that performance remained effective,
the heightened threat levels resulting from the events of 11 September were
responded to at both management and operational levels.
Presiding Officers review
A major review of security was finalised in November 2001 in response to a
request from the Presiding Officers. In responding to the review, the Presiding
Officers indicated that the security management function in Parliament House
should be centralised. That was achieved through the establishment of a Security
Management Board, chaired by the Secretary of Joint House Department and also
including the Serjeant-at-Arms, the Usher of the Black Rod and the Security
Controller.
The role of the Security Management Board is to provide advice on policies,
practices and procedures on all matters relating to security at Parliament House,
and to develop long-term plans to address parliamentary security issues. The
establishment of the Security Management Board should significantly enhance
coordination of the management of security.
Operational enhancements
The Presiding Officers approved significant operational enhancements to protective
security arrangements at Parliament House during 200102. Those enhancements
mainly centred on access control and denial-of-means arrangements and were introduced
on a cost-neutral basis. For example, a restriction was placed on the issue
of unaccompanied day passes to visitors to private areas of the building.
These initiatives enhanced security at Parliament House but did not unduly limit
access to the building for those with legitimate reasons for access. They were
generally well accepted by members and other building occupants.
The receipt of suspect mail items at Parliament House, three of which
disrupted work in some offices in the executive wing and the loading dock,
resulted in the implementation of a number of enhancements. In the loading
dock procedures were implemented, and equipment upgraded, in relation
to the receipt and handling of mail and other deliveries. Efforts were
also made to raise awareness of security issues surrounding the handling
of mail. Those measures, which should see a significant reduction in disrupted
work, were well received by members and building occupants.
The use of non-ongoing security staff during sittings and social functions
provided significant cost savings without compromising client services. The
preparation of access passes for people attending social functions was streamlined
by the acquisition of a specific printer for this purpose, resulting in significant
productivity benefits and improvements to client services.
The Australian Protective Service continued providing protective security services
for the executive wing and external precincts under a jointly funded contractual
arrangement with the department and the Department of the Senate.
Events in the precincts
There were 42 events held in the assembly area during the year, many
attracting media coverage and some attracting the interest of ministers,
senators and members. The scope of events held in the assembly area ranged
from vigils by single persons to large gatherings. All protest activities
and events were conducted within the protest area without disrupting the
Parliament. The new, permanent, crowd safety rails which were installed
adjacent to the assembly area proved very useful for crowd control purposes.
The Presiding Officers Guidelines for the conduct of protests and demonstrations
in the Parliamentary Precincts were redrafted during the year to bring them
into line with current approved practices and to make them more accessible to
the general reader. A significant addition to prohibited activities was effected
with the inclusion of unless approved by the Presiding Officers, the lighting,
maintenance and carriage of fire within the Precincts is prohibited. This followed
an occasion when a fire was lit on the mosaic in the ceremonial forecourt, which
could have caused some damage to that significant work of art.
Liaison with other law enforcement agencies
Good working relationships with other law enforcement and intelligence agencies
continued throughout the year. On a number of occasions, members of the Australian
Federal Police provided support to the Australian Protective Service for crowd
control purposes or provided investigative assistance. As in previous years,
a joint training day for Australian Federal Police and Australian Protective
Service officers was conducted to familiarise officers with the building and
the precincts and to practise cooperative procedures for responses to requests
for attendance.
Visits by foreign dignitaries
There were 11 visits by foreign dignitaries during the year. The Security Controllers
Office was involved in extensive consultation with law enforcement and intelligence
agencies regarding security for those and many other visits. The Parliamentary
Security Service and Australian Protective Service provided personnel to facilitate
all visits of foreign dignitaries. All visits were conducted without any security
incidents. Favourable comments were received from the Ceremonial and Hospitality
Branch of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, referring to the
efficiency and cooperation of the Parliamentary Security Service in facilitating
those visits to Parliament House.
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