Inquiry Into Members of Parliament Staff (MOPS)

The Senate Finance and Public Administration References Committee is examining the adequacy and appropriateness of the framework for employment, management and accountability of staff under the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984 (the MOPS Act). The inquiry will examine, inter alia, the role of ministerial advisers, their accountability to the government, Parliament and public, and the interface between ministerial offices and government departments. It will also examine the role of departmental liaison officers (ie, public servants working for ministers) and their interaction with MOPS staff and departments. The closing date for submissions was 23 May 2003. The Committee is due to report on
8 October 2003.

Terms of Reference (PDF 79KB)

Submissions
Invitation to make a submission (PDF 124KB)
Submissions received
Notes to assist in the preparation of a submission

Submissions become Committee documents and are only made public after a decision by the Committee. Unauthorised release of submissions is not covered by parliamentary privilege. Further assistance can be obtained by phoning the secretariat on (02) 6277 3530 or email fpa.sen@aph.gov.au

Additional Information
Information received from the Department of Finance and Administration dated 1 October 2003

Public Hearings

Tuesday 2 September 2003 and Wednesday 3 September 2003
Program (Word 46KB)

Hansard Transcripts

Tuesday, 2 September 2003 Canberra (PDF 865KB)
Wednesday, 3 September 2003 Canberra (PDF 554KB)

Media Releases

1 September 2003 (Word 38KB)

A Code of Conduct for Members of Parliament Staff?

The Committee used a scenario-based exercise to ask a range of experts to comment on how a code of conduct for MOPS Act staff might be implemented. Read about it here.

Report (PDF 1009KB)