Michael Hatton (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

For the benefit of the member for Wakefield who made some comments about this at the start, page 268 of House of Representatives Practice says there are two general principles that are operative here in relation to a quorum. First:

it is not the duty of the Chair to count the House until attention has been drawn by a Member to the state of the House—

Thankfully; otherwise no-one would ever get heard in the place. Second:

when attention is drawn, the Chair is obliged to make a count or have a count made.

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