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No. 6 - Committee membership

Most senators are members of committees during their term of office. There are approximately 45 committees on which senators serve. These include legislative and general purpose standing committees, legislative scrutiny committees, domestic standing committees, select committees and joint committees of various kinds. For further information about these, see Odgers' Australian Senate Practice, 11th edition, chapter 16.

How is the composition of committees determined?

The Senate, through its standing or other orders, determines the composition of its committees. The composition of joint committees is determined by resolutions agreed to by both Houses. The composition of most committees reflects the composition of the Senate itself and from October 1994 to September 2006 the distribution of chairs was guided by this principle. In September 2006 the committee system was restructured to return the chairs of legislative and general purpose standing committees to government senators.

The table below shows the composition of committees established under the standing orders.

¹nominated by the Leader of the Government in the Senate
²nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
³nominated by minority groups or independent senators

For select committees or joint committees the membership formula is usually contained in the resolution of appointment or in a subsequent resolution. If not, standing order 27(1) provides for members to be nominated by the mover of the motion to establish the committee.

How are senators appointed to committees?

Senators are appointed to committees by resolution of the Senate, on the nomination of the Leader of the Government in the Senate, the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate or minority groups or independent senators, in accordance with the membership formula for the particular committee.

The nominator writes a letter to the President nominating senators to be members of certain committees. The letter may be signed on behalf of the Leader of the Government or Opposition by the Manager of Government or Opposition Business or the Government or Opposition Whip, respectively. In practice, most nominations are handled by the whips. The President announces receipt of the nomination to the Senate. These announcements are included on the Order of Business (“the Red”) on any sitting day after “Tabling of documents” in the afternoons, although they may be dealt with at any time when there is no other business before the chair. After the nominations are announced, the duty minister seeks leave to move a motion immediately for the appointment of senators to committees. Leave is required because this is a motion of which notice would otherwise need to be given. The Senate then votes on the motion and the members are thus appointed.

What happens if nominations outnumber vacancies?

It is unusual for there to be more nominations than there are vacancies because committee membership is generally resolved by agreement within or between the various parties, groups or independent senators. Where agreement cannot be reached, however, the standing orders provide for a ballot to be held so that the Senate itself may determine the issue (see standing order 25(6) and standing order 27).

When a ballot is to be held, the bells are rung for four minutes and the Clerks hand out ballot papers. Senators vote by writing the names of the candidates they wish to vote for and the ballot papers are collected and counted by the Clerks. Whips are usually appointed as scrutineers to check the count. The President then announces the result. If two candidates have an equal number of votes, the result is determined by the President by lot (standing order 163).

Getting off a committee

It takes a resolution of the Senate to discharge a senator from membership of most committees. In practice, appointments and resignations are dealt with in the letters from nominators and a single motion proposes that senators be discharged from, and appointed to, committees. If there are several membership changes, a list is circulated in the chamber for the information of senators before the motion is moved.

Are there different types of membership?

The standing orders provide for different types of membership of legislative and general purpose committees. As well as the eight full members, the Senate may appoint additional members to a committee as participating members. Participating members may take part in public hearings and private meetings. They have all the rights of members, including the right to receive copies of submissions and other documentation and to contribute to reports, but they are non-voting members (see standing order 25(7)). As such, they do not affect the composition of the committee but they may count for the purpose of determining a quorum. Participating members are appointed to, and discharged from, committees by resolution of the Senate as described above. The exception is that when committees undertake scrutiny of the estimates, it is not necessary for a senator to become a participating member of a committee for that purpose. Any senator has the right to attend estimates hearings, participate in deliberations on the estimates and add to the committee's report (see standing order 26(8)).

Substitute members are appointed by resolution of the Senate to replace an existing member for a specific period of time, for the duration of a particular inquiry or for the consideration of particular issues. For example, one senator may replace another on a committee considering estimates for a particular portfolio. Unlike participating members, substitute members have voting rights in respect of those matters for which they are substituting for other members.

A temporary order of the Senate adopted with effect from September 2006 enables a substitute member to be nominated from among the participating members of a committee where a full member is unable to attend a meeting.

Substitute and participating membership provides significant flexibility. Although the standing orders refer to such membership only in relation to legislative and general purpose standing committees, the Senate may make similar arrangements for its other kinds of committees by specific resolutions.

Quorums

A quorum is the minimum number of members required to be present for a meeting to proceed. As in the Senate, a quorum must be formed if a senator draws attention to the lack of a quorum (see standing order 29(2)). Standing order 29(1) provides that a quorum in each committee or subcommittee is either a majority of the members or two members, where one was appointed on the nomination of the Leader of the Government in the Senate and the other on the nomination of the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. Participating members may count towards a quorum if a majority of members is not present. The Senate may agree to different quorum arrangements for particular committees.

Can senators serve on committees before they are sworn in?

New senators may be appointed to committees in advance of their swearing-in and may serve on committees from the first day of their term of office. In practice, the appointment of new senators to committees from the beginning of a term starting on 1 July is often agreed to in advance by the Senate so that committees may continue to operate with full membership through the transition from one Senate to another.

Conflict of interest

A senator who has a conflict of interest in relation to a committee inquiry may not sit on the committee for that inquiry. See Odgers' Australian Senate Practice, 11 th edition, page 375 for further details. Senators may wish to seek advice on such matters from the Clerk.

Need more information about committees?

The following publications are available on the Senate Intranet or from the Clerk Assistant (Committees) (extension 3371, suite SG.39):

• Chairs' Guide to Procedure (see under Committees\Committee Office Procedural Information)
• Senate Committees - A Handbook for Senators' Staff (see under Committees\Committee Office Procedural Information).

For general information, see:

• Senate Brief No. 4—Senate Committees and
• Senate Brief No. 5—Consideration of Estimates by the Senate Committees.

For assistance with any matters covered by this guide contact the Clerk Assistant (Committees) on extension 3371 or cacommittees@aph.gov.au.

January 2008

This publication is available electronically at http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/pubs/guides/index.htm.

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