Sue Lines (President) | Link to this | Hansard source

Messages have been received from the House of Representatives forwarding resolutions agreed to by that house relating to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence, the appointment of the Joint Select Committee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra and an amendment to the resolution of appointment to the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade.

The House of Representatives messages read as follows—

Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade

Message No.189

President

The House of Representatives acquaints the Senate of the following resolution which was agreed to by the House of Representatives and requests the concurrence of the Senate therein:

That the resolution of appointment of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade be amended to read as follows:

(1) a Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade be appointed to inquire into and report on such matters relating to foreign affairs and trade as may be referred to it by either House of the Parliament or a Minister;

(2) annual reports of government departments and authorities and reports of the Auditor-General presented to the House shall stand referred to the committee for any inquiry the committee may wish to make and reports shall stand referred to the committee in accordance with a schedule tabled by the Speaker to record the areas of responsibility of each committee, provided that:

(a) any question concerning responsibility for a report or a part of a report shall be determined by the Speaker; and

(b) the period during which an inquiry concerning an annual report may be commenced by a committee shall end on the day on which the next annual report of that department or authority is presented to the House;

(3) the committee consist of 19 members, eight Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Government Whip or Whips, five Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Opposition Whip or Whips or by any minority group or independent Member, two Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Government in the Senate, two Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate and two Senators to be nominated by any minority group or independent Senator;

(4) every nomination of a member of the committee be notified in writing to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(5) the members of the committee hold office as a joint standing committee until the House of Representatives is dissolved or expires by effluxion of time;

(6) the committee elect a:

(a) Government member as its Chair; and

(b) non-Government member as its deputy chair who shall act as chair of the committee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the committee;

(7) at any time when the chair and deputy chair are not present at a meeting of the committee the members present shall elect another member to act as chair at that meeting;

(8) in the event of an equally divided vote, the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, have a casting vote;

(9) six members of the committee constitute a quorum of the committee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(10) the committee:

(a) have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of three or more of its members and to refer to any subcommittee any matter which the committee is empowered to examine;

(b) appoint the chair of each subcommittee who shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote; and

(c) appoint the deputy chair of each subcommittee who shall act as chair of the subcommittee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the subcommittee and who shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote;

(11) in addition to the members appointed pursuant to paragraph (10), the chair and deputy chair of the committee be ex officio members of each subcommittee appointed;

(12) at any time when the chair and deputy chair of a subcommittee are not present at a meeting of the subcommittee the members of the subcommittee present shall elect another member of that subcommittee to act as chair at that meeting;

(13) two members of a subcommittee constitute the quorum of that subcommittee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(14) members of the committee who are not members of a subcommittee may participate in the proceedings of that subcommittee but shall not vote, move any motion or be counted for the purpose of a quorum;

(15) the committee or any subcommittee have power to:

(a) call for witnesses to attend and for documents to be produced;

(b) conduct proceedings at any place it sees fit;

(c) sit in public or in private;

(d) report from time to time;

(e) adjourn from time to time and to sit during any adjournment of the Senate and the House of Representatives; and

(f) conduct meetings for the purpose of private briefings at any time;

(16) the committee or any subcommittee have power to consider and make use of the evidence and records of the Joint Committees on Foreign Affairs and Defence, and Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, appointed during previous Parliaments; and

(17) the provisions of this resolution, so far as they are inconsistent with the standing orders, have effect notwithstanding anything contained in the standing orders.

Speaker

House of Representatives 2 July 2026

______

Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence

Message No.190

President

The House of Representatives acquaints the Senate of the following resolution which was agreed to by the House of Representatives and requests the concurrence of the Senate therein:

That the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence have power to consider and make use of the evidence and records of the Joint Committees on Foreign Affairs and Defence, and Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, appointed during the current and previous Parliaments.

Speaker

House of Representatives

2 July 2026

______

Joint Standing Committ ee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra

Message No.191

President

The House of Representatives acquaints the Senate of the following resolution which was agreed to by the House of Representatives and requests the concurrence of the Senate therein:

That:

(1) a Joint Select Committee on the Centenary of Parliament in Canberra be appointed to oversee planning and delivery of the commemoration of the centenary of Parliament in Canberra, in consultation with the Presiding Officers;

(2) the committee consist of nine members: Ms Claydon as Chair, Mr McCormack as Deputy Chair, Mr Dreyfus, Ms Payne, Ms Sharkie, Mr Rebello, Senator Stewart, Senator Walker and Senator Kovacic;

(3) the members of the committee hold office as a joint select committee until 30 November 2027;

(4) the deputy chair shall act as chair of the committee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the committee;

(5) at any time when the chair and deputy chair are not present at a meeting of the committee the members present shall elect another member to act as chair at that meeting;

(6) the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote;

(7) three members of the committee constitute a quorum of the committee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(8) the committee:

(a) have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of three or more of its members and to refer to any subcommittee any matter which the committee is empowered to examine; and

(b) appoint the chair of each subcommittee who shall have a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equally divided vote, a casting vote;

(9) at any time when the chair of a subcommittee is not present at a meeting of the subcommittee, the members of the subcommittee present shall elect another member of that subcommittee to act as chair at that meeting;

(10) two members of a subcommittee constitute a quorum of that subcommittee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House;

(11) members of the committee who are not members of a subcommittee may participate in the proceedings of that subcommittee but shall not vote, move any motion or be counted for the purpose of a quorum;

(12) the committee or any subcommittee have power to:

(a) call for witnesses to attend and for documents to be produced;

(b) conduct proceedings at any place it sees fit;

(c) sit in public or in private;

(d) report from time to time; and

(e) adjourn from time to time and to sit during any adjournment of the House of Representatives and the Senate; and

(13) the provisions of this resolution, so far as they are inconsistent with the standing orders, have effect notwithstanding anything contained in the standing orders.

Speaker

House of Representatives

2 July 2026

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate concurs with the resolutions of the House of Representatives relating to joint committees.

Question agreed to.