Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senators, as you are aware, on 15 September this year, the Clerk of the Senate, Dr Rosemary Laing, gave notice to me that she intends to retire as Clerk on 8 March next year. The Parliamentary Service Act provides for the Clerk to be appointed by the President following consultation with senators. A person may not be appointed as Clerk unless they have extensive knowledge of, and experience in, relevant parliamentary law, procedure and practice.

I consulted with senators on the selection process I proposed to adopt and received support for that process. I was assisted in this process by the Deputy President, Senator Lines; Senator Brandis, as Leader of the Government in the Senate; Senator Gallagher, as the representative of the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate; Senator Siewert, as a representative of the Australian Greens and the Australian Greens' longest-serving senator; and Senator Xenophon, as the longest-serving senator on the crossbench.

Following an open, competitive and merit-based selection process, the selection panel unanimously agreed that the current Deputy Clerk, Mr Richard Pye, demonstrated greater merit and should be appointed Clerk of the Senate. Following consultation yesterday—

Honourable senators: Hear, hear!

I am sure the Deputy Clerk is monitoring the chamber very closely, as a diligent Deputy Clerk would! Following consultation yesterday with the Standing Committee on Appropriations, Staffing and Security, I am pleased to now inform the Senate that I have appointed Mr Richard Pye as Clerk of the Senate to take effect on 9 March next year. I congratulate Richard on his appointment as the next Clerk of the Senate and look forward to working with him in his new role. As a matter of interest, he will be the 14th Clerk of the Senate in 115 years.

So as not to conflate the two issues, and to give due credit to Richard Pye's selection as Clerk, I will be making a further announcement regarding the retirement of our current Clerk, Dr Rosemary Laing, later in the week.

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—Mr President, it is a very big day for the announcement of important constitutional officers. Some three hours ago, the government announced the appointment of the 13th Chief Justice of Australia, and you have just announced the appointment of the 14th Clerk of the Senate. On behalf of government senators, I wish to offer my warmest congratulations to Richard Pye on his selection. Without any disrespect to the other candidates, I think I can say that Richard Pye was the outstanding—indeed, in many ways, the obvious—choice for promotion to the role of Clerk of the Senate.

Richard graduated with degrees in economics and law from the University of Sydney, and he has spent almost all of his career in public service. He first became a member of the Senate staff in 1992, almost 25 years ago. Because this is a 10-year, non-renewable appointment, and as Richard has indicated that it would be his intention to serve the full 10 years, by the time his service to the Australian Senate expires he will have served the Senate for almost 35 years. That is not unique, but it is exceptional. In the modern age it is very, very rare indeed.

Those of us on the government side of the chamber who have come to know and deal with Richard Pye over the years have found him exemplary. He is gracious; he is gentlemanly; he is helpful; he is an authority on Senate practice; he is engaging—he is everything that one would wish an office holder of such an important and, in many ways, sensitive office to be. On behalf of government senators, I congratulate Richard very warmly. He is a popular figure in this chamber. He is one of the characters of the place, and, although not a public figure in the way that politicians are, he is every bit as much a part of the Senate as those of us who serve as senators. We wish him well in what I am sure will be a distinguished term.

There will be another occasion, as you mentioned, to express our deep, deep appreciation for the service of Dr Rosemary Laing, the retiring Clerk of the Senate. But that can be a matter for another day.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I rise on behalf of opposition senators to add our congratulations to Richard Pye on this appointment. We have obviously had the opportunity over many years to work with him, and we echo the comments of Senator Brandis as to his capacity and competence. I asked the Clerk when Mr Pye started, and I was told 1992. I was trying to recall what some of us might have been doing in 1992. He began as a journals officer, I am told. As you have said, Mr President, he is the 14th Clerk.

I would just like to make a brief point, if I may, about the tradition of which Richard Pye is a part. I think we have a strong tradition, an important tradition, in this chamber of parliamentary officers who are both principled and competent. The country is well served by the outstanding officers who make up the parliamentary officers associated with the Senate. They are in many ways the guardians of the role of this chamber and the tradition of this chamber. Many of them outlast many senators. They perform an extraordinarily important role. We look forwarded to working with Richard Pye. We have no doubt that he will continue the outstanding tradition to which I have alluded.

In relation to Dr Laing, there will be much more to say—I am sure she is very happy to hear that—before we rise on this occasion.

Richard Di Natale (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I rise to echo the sentiments of both the Leader of the Government in the Senate and the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. I have always found, as all of us in the Greens have found, Richard Pye to be thoroughly professional, approachable and extremely diligent. We really look forward to his appointment. I will just finish by saying that anyone called Richard who wears an earring has to be okay.

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—The Nationals would also like to add our congratulations to Richard Pye and acknowledge that he has been here for a huge amount of time. We can all recall him at different times. If you have been working here for a period of time you would have seen Richard in different places. When we were in opposition, the assistance he gave us in the drafting office, for example, was absolutely essential. Somebody who has worked in almost every element of assistance to this chamber is, I am sure, going to bring a great deal of experience to the job. I take this opportunity, on behalf of the Nationals, to congratulate him.