House debates

Thursday, 25 February 2021

Questions to the Speaker

Members of Parliament: Staff

3:16 pm

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Melbourne. As the Prime Minister said the other day, with the information that the President of the Senate and I provided to him, there's no permanent pass but, if someone's signed in, that's a manual record, and what we'd advised was that it's impossible to know quickly whether that was the case. Just to give the member for Melbourne and members of the House some context, I've got a sample of the number of people signed in just for a week in November of 2019—just one week that's been picked for a sample. On the Monday, it's 566; on the Tuesday, 717; on the Wednesday, 825; and, on the 28th, 601. That's to give you some context of the number of people that are signed in. As to the question you've asked about, as I said, it isn't a simple task to get an answer to that. But I undertake to consult with the President of the Senate and examine any other issues that might be pertinent to that.

You asked the broader question about entering Parliament House. Anyone can enter the public areas. You asked about Commonwealth parliamentary offices. They are not the responsibility of the Presiding Officers. You asked about the lobbyist register. That is not the responsibility of the Presiding Officers. As for what meetings might have happened in ministerial offices, that's not the responsibility of the Presiding Officers. But I undertake to come back to the member for Melbourne. I'm being very clear that, for the reasons I've outlined, it won't be today, but I'll come back to the parliament.

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