Page 1937 - Week 06 - Thursday, 9 June 2022
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Assembly orders and resolutions, such as contained in continuing resolution 4A. The bill seeks to amend the act to introduce additional requirements so far as the handling of Assembly information, pursuant to the issuing of a preliminary inquiry notice, is concerned.
Among other matters, the proposed amendments will ensure that a current or former member is given the opportunity to make any claim in relation to parliamentary privilege so that, where necessary, continuing resolution 4A is able to be applied.
The bill seeks to introduce additional requirements to apply if a claim of parliamentary privilege is made in the course of the exercise of a search warrant. In such a case, under the additional provisions, the investigator executing the warrant must either stop exercising the power in relation to the document or thing over which such a claim has been made or require that the claimant secure the document or thing and give it to the investigator. Following this, it is then given over to the custody of the Clerk and, where necessary, continuing resolution 4A is able to be applied.
The bill seeks to introduce additional requirements in relation to examination summonses. Under the proposed amendments, where a person other than a current or former member receives a summons and considers that the summons requires the giving of evidence, or the production of the document or other thing containing Assembly information, the person must not give the evidence, or produce the document or thing, to the commission; must give the Speaker a copy of the examination summons and tell the commission that they have given the Speaker a copy of the summons; and must comply with the examination summons, to the extent that it does not relate to Assembly information.
The procedure enables the Speaker to advise an affected member or former member about the possibility that a matter of privilege is at issue so that any claim is able to be made. If a claim is made, it is then able to be addressed in accordance with continuing resolution 4A. It is open to the Speaker to authorise the giving of evidence or the production of the document or thing—for instance, following the conclusion of the process set out under continuing resolution 4A.
The bill seeks to insert a number of new notes in the act in order to reinforce the operation of sections 7 and 177—that is, that the act does not abrogate the Assembly’s privileges and that claims of parliamentary privilege must be dealt with by the Assembly.
The bill seeks to require that preliminary inquiry notices and examination summons issued by the commission are to include a statement relating to the requirements that must be observed in respect of Assembly information. This means that those in receipt of a notice or a summons will be made aware of their legal obligations in respect of that information as a matter of course.
The bill seeks to amend the act so that it is permissible to disclose certain information to allow a claim of parliamentary privilege to be made or to be dealt with by the Legislative Assembly. Importantly, the amendments in the bill do nothing to prevent the commission from investigating matters that arise in connection with members of
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