Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That:

(1) in accordance with section 6 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011, matters relating to the powers and proceedings of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights shall be as follows:

(a) the committee consist of 10 members, 3 Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Government Whip, 2 Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Opposition Whip or by any minority group or independent Member, 2 Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Government in the Senate, 2 Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate and 1 Senator to be nominated by any minority group or independent Senator;

(b) every nomination of a member of the committee be notified in writing to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(c) the committee elect a:

  (i) Government member as its chair; and

  (ii)   non-Government member as its deputy chair who shall act as chair of the committee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the committee;

(d) at any time when the chair and deputy chair are not present at a meeting of the committee the members present shall elect another member to act as chair at that meeting;

(e) in the event of an equally divided vote, the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, have a casting vote;

(f) three members of the committee constitute a quorum of the committee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(g) the committee:

  (i) have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of three or more of its members, and to refer to any subcommittee any matter which the committee is empowered to examine; and

  (ii)   appoint the chair of each subcommittee who shall have a casting vote only;

(h) at any time when the chair of a subcommittee is not present at a meeting of the subcommittee the members of the subcommittee present shall elect another member of that subcommittee to act as chair at that meeting;

(i) two members of a subcommittee constitute a quorum of that subcommittee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(j) members of the committee who are not members of a subcommittee may participate in the proceedings of that subcommittee but shall not vote, move any motion or be counted for the purpose of a quorum;

(k) the committee or any subcommittee have power to:

  (i) call for witnesses to attend and for documents to be produced;

  (ii)   conduct proceedings at any place it sees fit;

  (iii)   sit in public or in private;

  (iv)   report from time to time; and

  (v) adjourn from time to time and sit during any adjournment of the Senate and the House of Representatives;

(l) the committee or any subcommittee have power to consider and make use of the evidence and records of the Joint Committee on Human Rights appointed during the previous Parliament;

(m) the committee may appoint counsel to advise the committee with the approval of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and

(n) the provisions of this resolution, so far as they are inconsistent with the standing orders, have effect notwithstanding anything contained in the standing orders; and

(2) a message be sent to the Senate acquainting it of this resolution and requesting that it concur and take action accordingly.

Question agreed to.

See this speech in context