Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There was another question asked of me by the member for Moreton which I also propose to deal with at this stage. I apologise for holding up question time.

Yesterday, after question time, the member for Moreton asked me a question about the use of CCTV and the searching of members' offices within Parliament House.

Members have the right to expect that their offices and property are safe from unauthorised access and theft while they are in Parliament House and during their frequent absences from Parliament House. Responsibility for the security of members' suites within Parliament House rests with the Serjeant-at-Arms, and this includes the management of access by third parties to the suites for maintenance (both routine and emergency) and the issue of keys to members' suites.

As I said yesterday, members' offices cannot be searched without the permission of the relevant member. The only exception to this is in relation to search warrants to be executed by the police in respect of a member.

I was also asked about the use of CCTV within Parliament House. The first thing to say is that when CCTV was installed in the parliament it was done so to form part of a range of security measures in place to protect Parliament House and, more importantly, its occupants. In respect of access to CCTV footage, I can confirm that such access is governed by a policy which is publicly available on the APH website; however, for the convenience of members I will have copies of the policy delivered to each member's suite today.