For the sitting period
11-21 October 1999
Orders for documents: remedies for
refusal
The passage by the Senate of orders for production of documents
again provided a barometer of matters of controversy in which
government was charged with concealing information. A turning point
may have been reached in that the Senate for the first time adopted
remedies for a ministerial refusal to produce information apart
from the exaction of a political penalty on the government.
The document giving rise to this situation was a draft paper on
welfare reform which the Minister for Family and Community
Services, Senator Newman, allegedly announced she would produce at
a Press Club address but which was not then produced, amid claims
that it had been suppressed. The Senate passed an order for the
document on 12 October. The minister on the same day tabled a
substitute document, the terms of reference for a group examining
welfare reform, and indicated that the paper in question had not
been finalised but would be produced when it was completed. The
actual document demanded not having been produced, Senator Newman
was censured by the Senate on 13 October and a further order for
the document made. The debate on the censure motion was notable for
a discussion on remedies which might be applied if the document did
not appear. The Opposition did not agree with some remedies
proposed by the Australian Democrats, who initiated the censure
motion, which involved preventing Senator Newman functioning as a
minister in the Senate, but suggested other possible remedies. On
19 October, the document still not having been produced, an order
was made for other associated information, and an order was passed
extending question time with effect until the end of the year or
until the document is produced. The latter order provided that
question time would continue until a "quota" of Opposition and
Australian Democrats’ questions had been asked. On 21 October
a further remedy was applied. The Community Affairs References
Committee was given a reference on the content of the document, the
committee was directed to hold a public hearing on the matter, and
the officers who appeared in June to explain the estimates of the
Department of Family and Community Services were directed to appear
at the hearing to give evidence. The hearing is to take place on 12
November, before the Senate next meets.
Another intense controversy arose over a leaked cabinet document
revealing proposals for higher education funding. The matter was
pursued in spite of the government largely disowning the proposals
in the leaked submission. The Senate passed on 20 October an order
for various associated documents. On the following day one document
was produced together with a statement giving reasons for the
non-production of other documents. It is likely that this matter
will be further pursued when the Senate meets again.
Another question causing great political agitation was the claim
that large numbers of magnetic resonance imaging machines had been
imported because of premature disclosure of relevant government
budget decisions. Although the government announced an inquiry into
the matter, the Senate passed an order on 21 October for relevant
documents. The deadline for production of the documents is the next
day of sitting.
The Senate also passed an order on 21 October for a draft report
by the Bureau of Air Safety Investigation on the Class G airspace
trial, another matter, affecting air safety, of great controversy.
The deadline for the production of this document is also the next
day of sitting.
Legislation
Two special appropriation bills considered by the Senate on 11
October provided for assistance for the book industry and for
grants for alternative fuel and renewable energy development.
Provisions in the bills allowed for grants to be made to persons
and organisations other than government bodies without terms and
conditions. The Senate struck out these provisions on the basis
that the specification of terms and conditions is an essential
element of audit control of expenditure. Although the government
defended the provisions on grounds of administration convenience,
the amendments were eventually accepted by the government.
In considering the Customs Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1)
1998 on 14 October, the Senate struck out provisions imposing a
vicarious criminal liability on individual employers for the
actions of their employees. These provisions were regarded as
objectionable on civil liberties grounds.
A great deal of time over several days was devoted to the
Corporate Law Economic Reform Program Bill 1998. A very large
volume of amendments was made to the bill relating to the
obligations of corporations and their principals. The bill was
finally passed by the Senate on 18 October. All of the amendments
were eventually accepted by the government.
The Public Service and Parliamentary Service Bills reappeared
after a long absence. The government had not agreed to extensive
amendments made by the Senate in the previous Parliament. The bills
came forward again as a result of agreement between the government
and the Opposition, an agreement reflected in an amended version of
the bills presented to the Senate. Further amendments were made,
however, when the bills were considered in the Senate on 14
October. For a time it appeared that the bills would again fail to
pass because of disagreement over one set of amendments relating to
limits on temporary employment. On 20 October, however, final
agreement was reached as a result of government undertakings about
regulations which would govern temporary employment, and the bills
passed. The other amendments related mainly to the tenure of public
servants and procedural safeguards of public service independence.
As a result of the passage of the bills the Parliamentary Service
will be established as an entity separate from the executive Public
Service.
The pattern of the Senate striking out provisions in bills was
repeated with the Family and Community Services Legislation
Amendment (1999 Budget and Other Measures) Bill 1999 on 18 October,
when provisions reducing certain benefits were removed from the
bill.
A well-travelled bill was the Further 1998 Budget Measures
Legislation Amendment (Social Security) Bill 1999, which was
initially considered in the last period of sittings. Both
amendments and requests for amendments having been made in the
Senate, the bill was returned to the House for consideration of the
requests, which involved increased expenditure from standing
appropriations. When a bill is the subject of requests for
amendments the requests are resolved before the bill is passed by
the Senate and before any Senate amendments are resolved. In
agreeing to the requests, the government in the House made further
amendments to the bill which were government amendments rejected by
the Senate. These amendments were agreed to by the Senate on 18
October, the government on this occasion having persuaded the
Senate of their justification, and the bill was then returned to
the House for consideration of Senate amendments. The bill was
finally passed on the last day of the sitting period when the
Senate did not insist on an amendment disagreed to by the
government but substituted an amendment to which the government
agreed.
The Stevedoring Levy (Collection) Amendment Bill 1999,
considered by the Senate on 19 October, was a bill amendable
by the Senate because it did not impose a levy. Amendments were
made in the Senate reducing the amount and restricting the purposes
of the levy.
The Regional Forest Agreements Bill 1998 was returned from the
House with Senate amendments disagreed to and one substitute
amendment made. Proceedings in the Senate promised to be somewhat
complex when various amendments to the proposed substitute
amendment were circulated and it was indicated that this amendment
would be dealt with separately from the question of whether the
Senate would insist on its original amendments. The bill was
debated on 20 October but remained unresolved at the end of the
period.
The Health Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 3) 1999 was
considered at the time for non-controversial bills but was the
subject of extensive amendments relating mainly to the rules
governing registered health insurance organisations. The amendments
were accepted by the government.
Right of reply: corporation
The Privileges Committee recommended on 21 October the
publication of a response by the principals of a corporation which
was the subject of adverse comments by a minister in the Senate.
The Senate’s Privilege Resolution No. 5, which provides for
responses by persons adversely mentioned in the Senate, does not
refer to corporations, but the principals of the organisation were
allowed to respond on the basis that they could be identified and
were adversely affected by the minister’s remarks.
Committees
The Economics References Committee received a reference on 12
October 1999 on the vexed question of petroleum retail sites and
the limitations on the ownership of sites by oil companies.
The Finance and Public Administration References Committee
received a reference on 14 October on the government’s
proposals for changes to business taxation. This inquiry promises
to be as complex as that relating to the New Tax System
legislation, although the committee is required to report when the
Senate resumes.
The report on 18 October by the Joint Treaties Committee on the
renewal of the agreement relating to the defence facility at Pine
Gap provided the occasion for complaints about the dearth of
information given to the Parliament about the facility. It was
pointed out that United States congressional committees have
greater access to this information than their Australian
counterparts.
The following committee reports were presented during the
period:
Date tabled |
Committee |
Title |
11.10 |
Economics Legislation |
Additional Information—Estimates
1999-2000 |
" |
Legal and Constitutional
Legislation |
Report—Federal Magistrates Bills
1999 |
12.10 |
Rural and Regional Affairs and
Transport Legislation |
Additional Information—Budget
1999-2000 |
" |
Economics Legislation |
Report—Taxation Laws Amendment
Bill (No. 5) 1999 |
13.10 |
Scrutiny of Bills |
16th Report and Alert Digest No. 16 of
1999 |
" |
Native Title and the Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Land Fund |
15th Report—Native Title Act
1993—Inquiry under section 206(d) |
20.10 |
Scrutiny of Bills |
17th Report and Alert Digest No. 17 of
1999 |
21.10 |
Procedure |
2nd Report of 1999—Use of
motions to take note of answers; Putting of non-government
amendments under a limitation of time; Reports on unproclaimed
legislation; Estimates hearings—matters raised by the Rural
and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee;
Registration of senators’ interests |
" |
Corporations and Securities |
Report—Company Law Review Act
1998 |
" |
Rural and Regional and Transport
References |
Report—Australian Dairy
Industry |
" |
Privileges |
80th Report—Persons referred to
in the Senate |
Procedure
The Procedure Committee presented a report on 21 October
dealing, amongst other things, with the relevance of questions at
estimates hearings.
The 9th edition of Odgers' Australian Senate Practice
was tabled on 11 October.
Inquiries: Clerk's Office
(02) 6277 3364