Chapter 10 - Debate
Conduct of
senators
To facilitate the orderly process of
debate, certain rules of conduct apply to senators
in the Senate chamber.
It is the
responsibility of the President to maintain order in the Senate (SO 184(1)), and for
this purpose the chair ensures that the conduct of senators during proceedings
in the Senate is not disruptive of those proceedings.
When a question of order is raised, the senator speaking sits down and
the President determines the question of order (SO 197(4), (5)). In addition to
calling for order, the President may stand, in which case the senator speaking
must sit down and the Senate must be silent (SO 184(2)). Senators
must not move about the chamber when the President is putting a question to the
Senate (SO 184(3)).
On entering or leaving the chamber a senator must acknowledge the chair
(SO 185(1)). This is
done by a bow or nod to the chair. A senator may not pass between the chair and
a senator who is speaking or between the chair and the table (SO 185(2)). Senators
must not stand in the chamber unless seeking the call to speak (SO 185(3)).
It is not in order for senators to hold up newspapers or placards in
the chamber or display items such as badges with slogans (rulings of President Sibraa, SD, 9/12/1992, pp 4526-7; of President Reid, 21/10/1999, p.10177; 21/6/2001, p. 24881).
Senators may not have on their desks items which are objectionable to other
senators (ruling of President Kingsmill, SD, 24/5/1932, pp 1231, 1239). It is similarly not in order to wear in the chamber T-shirts
or other clothing bearing slogans (ruling of President Calvert, SD, 19/3/2003, p. 9664). The basis of these rulings is that, not only is
the holding up of placards with slogans disruptive of orderly debate, but it
would allow senators to intervene in debate other than by receiving the call
from the chair and participating in debate in accordance with the rules of the
Senate. It would be highly undesirable to have debate in the Senate reduced to
the level of displaying placards with slogans. The wearing of clothing, such as
T-shirts, with slogans is the same in principle as displaying placards or
badges with slogans and is objectionable and disorderly on the same grounds.
The use of
dictaphones in the chamber has been discountenanced by the Chair (SD,
17/8/1993, pp 24-5). Other equipment such as portable computers may be used if
there is no disruption of proceedings.
It is disorderly for a senator to smoke or eat in the chamber (ruling
of President
Givens, SD, 24/8/1923, p. 3493).
It is considered discourteous for a senator to leave the chamber
immediately after finishing a speech, in that the next speaker may comment on
the senator’s speech as part of the exchange of debate, and it is proper for
senators to hear each other’s views.
Advisers attending on senators in the places reserved for advisers in
the chamber are required to behave with decorum and not disturb proceedings
(ruling of President Sibraa, 8/12/1993, J.942; statement by chair 22/2/1994,
J.1289). Subject to that requirement, senators are entitled to have
whomever they choose as their advisers in their advisers’ benches (SD,
2/12/2005, p. 10).
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