Preliminary Pages
Foreword
This report is the Petitions Committee’s second report since
it was established in 2008, the first being its report into electronic
petitioning. The Committee’s intention with this short inquiry was to review
its framework under the Standing Orders and the way it has operated, so that
any necessary changes could be identified and put in place for the Petitions
Committee in the 43rd Parliament. The report outlines the work
undertaken by the Petitions Committee and assesses the Standing Orders that
define its role and operations. The Committee concludes that its framework is
generally effective and makes some recommendations for improvement.
The Petitions Committee was established with the objective
of strengthening the petitions process of the House. The impetus for its
creation came from a report of the House Procedure Committee in 2007, in which
it was noted that there was no means available for the House to respond to
petitions or to encourage Ministers to respond and, as a result, the tradition
of petitioning the Parliament had declined.
In 2008 the Standing Orders of the House were changed to
establish the Petitions Committee and to give it a role, not only to examine
petitions to ensure they complied with the rules of the House, but also to
inquire into matters relating to petitions and the petitions system. The
changes to the Standing Orders also enabled the Committee to refer petitions to
Ministers and to announce their responses and publish them.
One of the most important outcomes of the changes has been
the compliance by Ministers with requests for responses. Overwhelmingly, they
have responded in an informative and timely way. It is probably rare that the
response has given petitioners what they asked but they have received an
explanation of the government’s perspective on issues they raised, and that
explanation has been made publicly available by the Committee.
The Committee has followed up on matters raised in petitions
and responses by holding round table meetings with petitioners and Public
Servants. Its activities have been reported to the House regularly and its web page
is a central information point for access to information on preparing a
petition, the terms of petitions that have been presented to the House, Ministers’
responses, and the transcript of meetings that the Committee has held with
petitioners and Public Servants. In these ways, issues that concern people
have been brought to the notice of the Parliament and government—and other
Australians—all these things being valuable in themselves. By its activities
and its openness, I believe, the Committee has contributed to building the
links between the House and the Australian community.
In my view, the Petitions Committee has played a significant
role in revitalising the petitions process to the House, and informing
Australians of the opportunities they have to bring their grievances to the
House for its notice and for consideration and possible action by the
government. I am proud to have been the Chair of the first Petitions Committee
of the House of Representatives.
I thank my Committee colleagues, in particular, the Deputy
Chair, Mr Russell Broadbent, for their enthusiasm and dedication to the work of
the Committee. I also thank the Committee’s staff in the 42nd
Parliament.
I commend this report to the House.
Julia Irwin MP
Chair
Membership of the Committee
Chair
|
Mrs Julia Irwin MP
|
|
Deputy
Chair
|
Mr Russell Broadbent MP
|
|
Members
|
Hon Dick Adams MP
|
Mr Luke Simpkins MP (to
30/11/09)
|
|
Mr Darren Chester MP
|
Hon Alex Somlyay MP (30/11/09 to 10/2/10)
|
|
Ms Jennie George MP
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Mr Craig Thomson MP
|
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Mr Alex Hawke MP
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Ms Maria Vamvakinou MP
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Committee Secretariat
Secretary
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Ms Catherine Cornish
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Inquiry
Secretary
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Dr Brian Lloyd (to 12/05/010)
Mr Shane Armstrong (from 28/04/10)
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Administrative
Officers
|
Ms Naomi Swann
Ms Leonie Bury (from 7/04/10)
|
Terms of reference
To inquire into and report on the work of the Standing
Committee on Petitions, with particular reference to:
(a) the role and operations of the Standing Committee
on Petitions; and
(b) the effectiveness of the Standing Orders as they
relate to petitions.
List of recommendations
3 Effectiveness of the Standing Orders as they relate to petitions
Recommendation 1
The Committee recommends that the House make Sessional Orders
207 and 209 permanent.
Recommendation 2
The Committee recommends that the Standing Orders be amended
to enable the Petitions Committee to refer a petition to a House committee for
inquiry and report, should the committee so choose.
Executive summary
The 2007 report of the House of Representatives Standing
Committee on Procedure, Making a difference, led to a number of changes
to petitions to the House of Representatives, including the creation of the
Petitions Committee.
In this inquiry the Petitions Committee considered the role
that was set out for it by the Standing Orders of the House of Representatives,
the activities it has undertaken since it was formed in February 2008, and
whether any changes were necessary to enhance the role of the Committee and the
petitions process.
In the first chapter the Committee outlines the Procedure
Committee’s views on the decline of petitioning and its recommendations aimed
at renewing the status of petitions. Chapter 1 also contains a summary of the
changes to the Standing Orders, beginning in 2008, and an overview of the
inquiry and this report.
The role prescribed for the Petitions Committee is discussed
in chapter 2, as well as the approach it has taken to its work. Different
aspects of the Committee’s work program are examined, including the regular
‘petitions’ timeslot in the business of the House, and the role the Committee
has played in obtaining responses from Ministers to the issues raised in
petitions. Communications with petitioners, Ministers, Public Servants and
other interested parties are considered in the context of a more open and
accessible system of petitions for the House.
In chapter 3, the Committee examines in more detail the
impact of the Standing and Sessional Orders that relate particularly to
petitions, as well as summarising the former arrangements. The Committee
recommends that Sessional Orders 207 and 209, relating to presentation of
petitions (by Members and by the Committee Chair) and referral of petitions to
Ministers for written responses, be made permanent. The Committee also
recommends that it be given the capacity to refer petitions to House Committees
for inquiry and report, should those committees choose.
The report also includes a number of Appendixes that will
assist to explain it:
Appendix A: Submission and hearings
Appendix B: Standing and Sessional Orders
Appendix C: Public hearings and round table meetings
(non-inquiry related)
Appendix D: Draft Standing Order and
Appendix E: Statistics on petitions to the House of
Representatives.