Chapter 6 - Senators
Oath or affirmation of office
The Constitution,
section 42, requires senators to make and subscribe (sign) before the
Governor-General, or some person authorised by the Governor-General, an oath or
affirmation of allegiance in the form set out in the Constitution.
Senators make and sign the oath or affirmation at the first sitting of
the Senate which they attend after the commencement of their terms as senators.
Senators taking their places after a periodical or general election are sworn
in by the Governor-General.
Senators taking their places at other times are usually sworn in by the President, who is
authorised by the Governor-General, in accordance with section 42, to
administer the oath or affirmation (see Chapter 7, Meetings of the Senate).
Section 42 requires
that a senator make and subscribe the oath or affirmation before taking the
senator’s seat in the Senate. A senator must
therefore be sworn in before sitting in the Senate or participating in its
proceedings, but there is
nothing to prevent a senator
performing other official functions before taking the oath or affirmation. Thus
the Senate appoints senators to committees, and senators may participate in the
proceedings of those committees, before they have been sworn in. For this
purpose, membership of committees is often changed with effect from the date of
commencement of the terms of new senators who are appointed to committees.
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