ATTACHMENT 1
Consideration of
private senators’ bills—Proposed amendment of standing orders
That the following amendments of standing orders 55(1),
57(1)(d) and 59 take effect from the first sitting day in August 2015:
55 Times of meetings
(1) The
days and times of meeting of the Senate in each sitting week shall be:
Monday 10 am – 6.30 pm, 7.30 pm –
10.30 pm
Tuesday 12.30 pm – adjournment
Wednesday 9.30 am – 8 pm
Thursday 9.30 am – 8.40 pm
57(1)(d) Routine of business for Thursday
Before "Petitions", insert:
(i) General
business orders of the day for consideration of bills only for up to 2 hours 20
minutes
59 Government and general business
Government business shall take
precedence over general business, except that general business shall take
precedence over government business on Thursday as follows:
(a) from 9.30 am, for a period
not exceeding 2 hours and 20 minutes, general business orders of the day for
the consideration of bills shall be considered; and
(b) from not later than 4.30 pm,
for a period not exceeding 2½ hours, and general business orders of the day
shall take precedence over general business notices of motion on alternate
Thursdays.
ATTACHMENT 2
Changes to the
routine of business —Proposed amendment of standing orders
That the following amendments of standing orders take effect
from the first sitting day in August 2015:
(1) Consolidation
of opportunities for tabling and considering documents – standing order 61
Omit paragraph (1), substitute:
(1) (a) On
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, documents presented by the President or by a
minister shall be considered pursuant to this standing order at the time
provided.
(b) Immediately
after prayers on any day when consideration of documents occurs, the President
or a minister may present documents by handing them to the Clerk without any
announcement to the Senate, and the presentation of such documents shall be
reported to the Senate by the President when the consideration of documents is
called on under this standing order.
(c) Documents
presented on Monday and not called on on Monday may be considered on Tuesday
after the documents presented on that day, and documents presented on Monday
and Tuesday and not called on on either day may be considered on Wednesday
after documents presented on that day.
(2) Consolidation
of opportunities for tabling and considering committee reports – standing order
62 and 38
Standing order 62, omit paragraph
(4), substitute:
(4) (a) If
a committee report or government response to a report is presented at the time
provided on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, a motion may be moved relating to
the report or response.
(b) A
senator speaking to such a motion shall not speak for more than 10 minutes, and
debate on all such motions shall not exceed 60 minutes.
(c) If
a debate is not concluded at the expiration of that time the debate shall be
made an order of the day for Thursday at the time for consideration of
committee reports and government responses.
Standing order 38, omit paragraph
(7), substitute:
(7) If
the Senate is not sitting when a committee has prepared a report for
presentation, the committee may provide the report to the President or, if the
President is unable to act, to the Deputy President, or, if the Deputy
President is unavailable, to any one of the Temporary Chairs of Committees,
and, on the provision of the report:
(a) the
report shall be deemed to have been presented to the Senate;
(b) the
publication of the report is authorised by this standing order;
(c) the
President, the Deputy President, or the Temporary Chair of Committees, as the
case may be, may give directions for the printing and circulation of the
report; and
(d) the
presentation of the report shall be recorded in the Journals of the Senate for
the next sitting; and
(e) the
report may be considered under standing order 62(4) at the next available
opportunity after any reports presented that day.
(3) Consequential
amendments in relation to documents and committee reports
(a) Standing order 57(1), in relation to documents
On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday,
after Any proposal to debate a matter of public importance or urgency, insert:
Consideration of
documents under standing order 61 for up to 30 minutes
On Tuesday and Wednesday, omit:
At 6.50 pm, consideration of
government documents for up to 30 minutes under standing order 61.
(b) Standing order 57(1), in relation to committee
reports
On Tuesday, after Consideration
of documents under standing order 61 for up to 30 minutes, insert:
Consideration of committee reports
under standing order 62(4) for up to 60 minutes
On Thursday. after Discovery of
formal business, omit:
Consideration
of committee reports under standing order 62(4)
On Thursday. after Motions to
take note of answers, insert:
Consideration of committee
reports under standing order 62(4) for up to 60 minutes
(c) Standing order 169, in relation
to motions after tabling
Omit paragraph (2), substitute:
(2) Where
a motion is moved by leave in relation to a document or committee report
presented to the Senate, including a document or committee report presented to
the President when the Senate is not sitting, a senator speaking to such a
motion shall not speak for more than the time provided for a document or
committee report under standing order 61 or 62, as the case requires, and
debate on the motion shall not exceed a multiple of three times the applicable
speaking time limit; where 2 or more such motions are moved in succession,
debate on all motions shall not exceed a multiple of six times the applicable
speaking time limit.
(4) Streamlined
procedure for routine extension of time for a committee to report – standing
order 67
Omit the standing order,
substitute:
A senator, including a committee
chair, who wishes to postpone a notice or order of the day of which the senator
(or the committee) is in charge shall, before the time for postponement of
business, deliver to the Clerk written notification of the postponement. At
that time the Clerk shall read a list of such items, and they shall then be
taken to be postponed accordingly, but, at the request of any senator, the
question for the postponement of an item shall be put to the Senate for
determination without amendment or debate.
This standing order does not
apply to an order of the day for the presentation of a report of a select
committee.
(5) Streamlined
procedure for authorising committees to meet during the sitting of the Senate –
standing order 33
At the end of standing order 33,
add:
(5) For
the purpose of paragraph (3), a committee that seeks to meet contrary to this
standing order may deliver a notice in writing to the Clerk, signed by the
chair of the committee, setting out the particulars of the meeting proposed to
be held. Immediately after prayers on any day, the Clerk shall read a list of
such proposals and they shall be taken to be approved accordingly but, at the
request of any senator, the question for authorisation of a particular meeting
contrary to this standing order shall be put to the Senate for determination without
amendment or debate.
(6) MPI on Thursday – standing order 57
Standing order 57(1), Thursday,
omit “Any proposal to debate a matter of public importance or urgency”.
(7) Senators’ statements – standing order 57
Omit paragraph (2), substitute:
(2) On
Wednesday, at 12.45 pm till 2 pm senators may make statements without any
question before the chair, provided that a senator shall not speak for more
than 10 minutes, and if a division is called for, the division shall be taken
at a later hour of the day, not being earlier than 2 pm.
ATTACHMENT 3
NSW Legislative Council Standing Order 52 –
Order for the production of documents
- The House may order documents to be tabled
in the House. The Clerk is to communicate to the Premier’s Department, all
orders for documents made by the House.
- When
returned, the documents will be laid on the table by the Clerk.
- A return under this order is to include an
indexed list of all documents tabled, showing the date of creation of the
document, a description of the document and the author of the document.
- If at the time the documents are required to
be tabled the House is not sitting, the documents may be lodged with the Clerk,
and unless privilege is claimed, are deemed to be have been presented to the
House and published by authority of the House.
- Where
a document is considered to be privileged:
- a return is to be prepared showing the date
of creation of the document, a description of the document, the author of the
document and reasons for the claim of privilege,
- the documents are to be delivered to the
Clerk by the date and time required in the resolution of the House and:
- made available only to members of the
Legislative Council,
- not
published or copied without an order of the House.
- Any member may, by communication in writing
to the Clerk, dispute the validity of the claim of privilege in relation to a
particular document or documents. On receipt of such communication, the Clerk
is authorised to release the disputed document or documents to an independent
legal arbiter, for evaluation and report within seven calendar days as to the
validity of the claim.
- The independent legal arbiter is to be
appointed by the President and must be a Queen’s Counsel, a Senior Counsel or a
retired Supreme Court Judge.
- A report from the independent legal arbiter
is to be lodged with the Clerk and:
- made available only to members of the
House,
- not published or copied without an order
of the House.
- The Clerk is to maintain a register showing
the name of any person examining documents tabled under this order.
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