Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I present the ninth report of the Petitions Committee for the 46th Parliament.

Today there's only one petition for presentation. This is due to the combination of the sitting pattern and the four-week signature period for electronic petitions.

E-petitions are approved by the committee on a sitting Wednesday prior to collecting signatures and are open for signatures for four weeks. Frequently the end of the four-week signing period does not neatly align with the sitting pattern to provide a timely opportunity for presentation.

The result of this is the difference in the number of petitions to be presented on a sitting Monday, and today we are presenting fewer than usual.

As an example, e-petitions approved at the committee's last meeting on 5 February will be presented to the House on 23 March, almost two weeks after the period for gathering signatures has ended.

Paper petitions of course are not subject to this cycle, because they are approved for presentation by the committee after signatures have been gathered.

Thank you, and the committee looks forward to further updating the House on its work.

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