Opinions on the compellability of former ministers and ministerial advisers to attend as witnesses

An issue which arose during the inquiry by the Senate Select Committee on a Certain Maritime Incident was the ability of the committee of one House of Parliament to compel the attendance before it of a person who had been a minister serving as a Member of the other House. A related issue was the status of that persons then ministerial advisers. The Clerk of the House of Representatives was called on to provide advice on the matter. Other opinions, some of which appear in an appendix of the committee's report, were also offered and are published here.

• Opinion by Professor Geoffrey Lindell, dated 22 March 2002, concerning the obligation of former ministers (and their ministerial staff) to answer questions at an inquiry conducted by parliamentary committees: Comments on advice given by the Clerks of both Houses of the Commonwealth Parliament (Word format)

• Opinion by Professor Geoffrey Lindell, dated 1 April 2002, concerning the obligation of former ministers (and their ministerial staff) to answer questions at an inquiry conducted by parliamentary committees: Supplementary comments on advice given by the Clerks of both Houses of the Commonwealth Parliament (Word format)

• Opinion by Bret Walker SC, dated 16 May 2002, concerning witnesses former ministers and ministerial staff (PDF)

• Opinion by Alan Robertson SC, dated 26 June 2002, concerning the obligation of a former Member of the House of Representatives to attend and give evidence before the Senate Committee on a Certain Maritime Incident (Word format)

• Opinion by Professor Geoffrey Lindell, dated 16August 2002, concerning the obligation of former ministers (and their ministerial staff) to answer questions at an inquiry conducted by parliamentary committees (Word format)

• Paper by Professor Geoffrey Lindell, based on a paper delivered at the Annual Conference of the Australasian Study of Parliament Group held at the Victorian Parliament House in Melbourne, 11 October 2002:
  Current and former Members and Ministers (and their ministerial staff): Immunity from giving evidence to parliamentary inquiries established by Houses of Parliament in which they were not Members (PDF)

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