ROLE AND FUNCTIONS

The Department of the Parliamentary Reporting Staff (DPRS) is one of five departments which comprise the Parliamentary Service and directly support the Parliament. The Presiding Officers of the Parliament (the former President of the Senate, Senator the Hon. Margaret Reid until 18 August 2002, and the current President of the Senate, the Hon. Paul Calvert from 19 August 2002, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Hon. Neil Andrew MP) have, under the Parliamentary Service Act 1999, joint responsibility for the department.

The Secretary, Mr J W Templeton, is responsible to the Presiding Officers for the management of the department.

The department's vision is:

To give all Australians the opportunity to see, hear and read the work of their national Parliament.

The department's task is:

To provide the Australian Parliament with world class, value for money services and support..

Departmental aims

to supply competitive, world class services
to make services easy to find and easy to use
to constantly look for better ways of providing services
to use resources economically and effectively
to share knowledge and ideas
to value all staff and their contributions.

Departmental values

Professionalism

We are ethical, committed and use initiative in providing our services

Partnerships with clients

We work with clients to find the best way of meeting their needs

Continuous improvement

We seek ways to improve quality, value for money and personal effectiveness

Personal respect

We value and support each other and share ideas.

Departmental priorities

more cost effective services
easier access to services.

Departmental services

The department provides a range of complex and integrated reporting, information technology and communication services to Senators, Members, parliamentary committees, federal, state and local government, universities, schools, libraries, the media and professional and special interest groups.

The department provides the following specific services:

central computing networks and infrastructure
Parliament-wide databases, which are available both in Parliament House and, in many instances, on the Internet
management of the Extended Parliamentary Network (EPN) which connect Senators' and Members' Parliament House offices to their electorate offices
information technology training, desktop support and consultancy services
telecommunications services, including telephone and facsimile
Hansard reports of proceedings in the House of Representatives, the Senate and the Main Committee of the House of Representatives
Hansard transcripts of hearings of parliamentary committees
internal and external television broadcasts of proceedings of the House of Representatives, the Main Committee of the House of Representatives, the Senate and parliamentary committees
internal and external radio broadcasts of proceedings of the House of Representatives, the Main Committee of the House of Representatives, the Senate and parliamentary committees
teleconferencing, videoconferencing and audiovisual services
television production services for Senators, Members and the parliamentary administration
related electronic services, including division lights, bells, clocks, Senators' and Members' pagers and the public address and emergency warning intercom systems

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