Russell Broadbent (McMillan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I present the report of the Privileges and Members' Interests Committee in connection with the claim of parliamentary privilege by a member in relation to material seized under a search warrant.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—On 11 October 2016, the House referred to the Committee of Privileges and Members' Interests an inquiry into a claim for parliamentary privilege by the member for Blaxland in relation to material seized from Parliament House by the Australian Federal Police under a search warrant. The reference requires the committee to consider the member's claim and make a recommendation to the House about its ruling on the claim.

Many members will be familiar with the background on the matter. On 24 August 2016, the AFP executed a search warrant on the Department of Parliamentary Services. In accordance with the AFP National Guideline for Execution of Search Warrants where Parliamentary Privilege may be involved, the member for Blaxland advised the AFP that he would be claiming parliamentary privilege in respect of all the material seized under the warrant. The seized material has been held securely in the office of the Clerk of the House since that time.

The committee has now considered the matter. I present today a report setting out how the committee has conducted its inquiry, the committee's analysis on the law applying in this case and its findings and recommendations. In summary, the committee has found that in all the circumstances of this matter the material seized under the search warrant was held by the member for Blaxland in connection with his parliamentary responsibilities as a member and that the material relates to 'proceedings in parliament' as defined in the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1987. As a result, the material is subject to parliamentary privilege and need not be produced under the search warrant.

Accordingly, the committee recommends that the House rule to uphold the claim of parliamentary privilege by the member for Blaxland in relation to the seized material. The committee further recommends that the AFP be advised of the House's ruling on the matter and that the seized material be returned by the Clerk to the member for Blaxland.

I would like to thank the members of the committee—the members for Shortland, Menzies, Hunter, Scullin, Moore, Swan, Capricornia, Barker, Lingiari and Lilley—for their work on this inquiry. I commend the committee's report to the House.