The first sitting fortnight of the 48th Parliament featured the opening of Parliament, amendments to the standing orders, provision for statements to be made on two education bills after their passage through the House and the establishment of parliamentary committees and appointment of their members. New Members made their first speeches.
Opening of Parliament
The first sitting day of the 48th Parliament reflected the Constitution, standing orders and tradition. The day commenced with a Welcome to Country ceremony, conducted by Ngunnawal Elder Aunty Violet Sheridan, which was followed by a smoking ceremony on the Forecourt. Members then assembled in the Chamber and the proclamation was read by the Clerk of the House before Members walked in procession to the Senate Chamber to hear the Parliament formally declared open by the Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia, as the Deputy of the Governor-General.
Members then returned to the Chamber, where the Clerk read the authorisation to administer the oath or affirmation of allegiance and tabled the returns to the writs, which indicate the Member elected for each electoral division. Members were called to the Table in groups to swear an oath or make an affirmation and to sign the oath or affirmation form. The Constitution states that the House must choose a Speaker before proceeding to any other business. The Hon Milton Dick MP, who was nominated unopposed, was declared elected Speaker.
Later in the day, Members returned to the Senate Chamber to hear the Governor-General’s opening speech, which is a formal declaration of the causes of the calling together of the Parliament and includes a brief outline of the government’s proposed program of legislation.
Members returned to the Chamber, where a ‘formal’ bill was introduced as a symbolic declaration by the House that it is the master of its own program of business, before the Governor-General’s speech was reported to the House. Other business was then transacted, including the election of the Deputy Speaker (Ms Claydon) and Second Deputy Speaker (Mr Young) and the presentation of a warrant nominating Members of the Speaker’s Panel. The House also agreed to the proposed program of parliamentary sittings for 2025. The Address in Reply to the Governor-General’s speech was presented and the Member for Dickson moved that the Address be agreed to. Over the fortnight, 32 new Members made their first speech during debate on this motion.
Amendments to the standing orders
On 23 July, the House agreed to amend the standing orders, including the adoption of a sessional order which will be in place for the remainder of this session of Parliament. Some of these changes are summarised below.
Sanctions against disorderly conduct
The Speaker can now direct a Member to leave the Chamber for three hours, where there is continued or escalating disorderly conduct (standing order 94). The option for the Speaker to direct a Member to leave the Chamber for one hour remains available.
Changes relating to House general purpose standing committees
Amendments to standing orders 215 and 232 resulted in: changes to the names of certain committees; an additional general purpose standing committee (the House Standing Committee on Primary Industries); an increase to the number of members on each committee (all general purpose standing committees now have 10 members, when previously only three consisted of 10 members and the rest had nine members); and three committees will now elect a deputy Chair (previously they were appointed by the Leader of the Opposition).
Increased time for constituency statements and changes to the Federation Chamber order of business
The period for three minute constituency statements in the Federation Chamber has increased from 30 minutes to one hour and this now takes place on Tuesdays to Thursdays (standing orders 1 and 193). This and other changes to the order of business result in the Federation Chamber meeting for an additional 2½ hours each sitting week.
Changes to divisions
If there are six or fewer Members on one side after the doors are locked the Speaker shall declare the decision of the House immediately without completing the count. Previously, standing order 127 provided that the decision could be declared without completing the count if there were four or fewer members on one side.
Opportunities for crossbench Members
Sessional order 65A sets out principles for the allocation of the call for crossbench Members for certain items of business. This sessional order is substantially similar to the sessional order in the 47th Parliament, with crossbench Members now able to ask an additional question where Question Time continues for at least 21 questions, and a new provision which has the effect of giving priority to at least two crossbench Members seeking the call during the one hour period of constituency statements in the Federation Chamber.
Legislation
Introductions
During the fortnight, 26 bills were presented, including three introduced by private Members.
Passing the House
Eleven bills passed the House during the fortnight, including two education bills—the Universities Accord (Cutting Student Debt by 20 Per cent) Bill 2025 and the Early Childhood Education and Care (Strengthening Regulation of Early Education) Bill 2025.
On 29 July, a motion to suspend standing and sessional orders was agreed to allow the House to sit until 10 pm, if required, on 29 and 30 July and to allow 10 minute statements on the provisions of the two education bills for the rest of the week when there was no other business before the House or Federation Chamber. This provided Members with the opportunity to make speeches on the provisions of the bills after the bills had passed the House. After the suspension motion was agreed, both bills passed through the second and third reading stages very quickly: by 1 pm that day. Forty-eight Members subsequently made statements on the provisions of the bills. Both bills were passed, unamended, by the Senate later in the week.
Parliamentary committees
House standing committees were established under the standing orders (see above), and joint statutory and standing committees were established by the agreement of both Houses to motions in the same terms. Members were appointed to House and Joint committees, with nominations made in writing to the Speaker and motions of appointment then considered and agreed by the House.
On 30 July, an Opposition Member moved to refer the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Penalty and Overtime Rates) Bill 2025 to a House standing committee. Under standing order 143, a motion to refer a bill to a committee for an advisory report may be moved without notice after the first reading but before the question on the second reading is put. The proposed referral was negatived on division.
Marking the deaths of former Members and former Senators
On 24 July, the Prime Minister moved a condolence motion on the death of the Honourable Peter James Nixon AO, Member for Gippsland from 1961 to 1983 and a former Minister. The Leader of the Opposition seconded the motion and the Leader of the Nationals and another Member each spoke in support of the motion before it was referred to the Federation Chamber for further statements. Throughout the fortnight, the Speaker also referred to the death of former Members Petro Georgiou AO, Elizabeth Robyn Truman and the Hon Dr Charles Race Thorson Mathews. The Speaker also informed the House of the death of three former Senators: Dr Alan Eggleston AM, Martin Bruce Cameron and John Owen Stone AO.
Communication with the Senate
There was regular message traffic with the Senate this fortnight, much of it relating to the establishment of joint committees and the appointment of members to these committees. Three messages from the Senate were also reported transmitting bills introduced and passed by the Senate for the House’s concurrence.
The House is scheduled to meet next on Monday, 25 August 2025.