Legislative Assembly Privileges Committee

Report on Procedures for the
Right Of Reply

June 2001

Ordered To Be Printed

By Authority

Government Printer For The State Of Victoria

No. 87 - Session 1999-2001

Members Of The Committee

Mr P. J. Loney, MP Chair
Hon J. W. Thwaites, MP Deputy Chair
Hon R. F. Cooper, MP
Mr T. J. Holding, MP
Hon R. J. Hulls, MP
Hon R. R. C. Maclellan, MP
Mr N. J. Maughan, MP
Mr D. A. Nardella, MP
Mr A. F. Plowman, MP

Staff

Mr G. H. Westcott, Clerk of Committees, Legislative Assembly
Ms L. Choat, Manager, Procedure Office, Legislative Assembly

REPORT

The procedures for the right of reply are set out in Sessional Order 7. The right of reply was first established in the 53^rd Parliament and was effective from 1^st September 1998. In the 54^th Parliament the right of reply was continued.

The first submission was referred to the Committee in April 2000. To date the Committee has reported to the House on two applications for the ‘right of reply’, has rejected one application as it referred to matters before the right to reply was established and is currently examining another two applications.

Paragraph 9 of Sessional Order 7 empowers the Privileges Committee to agree to guidelines and procedures, not inconsistent with this Sessional Order, to apply to the consideration by it of submissions.

As the Committee has proceeded in examining the submissions received for the right of reply it has developed procedural guidelines in line with Sessional Order 7(9).

The first was to require that submissions must be received within six months of the making of the comments in the House unless exceptional circumstances (such as absence overseas or serious long term illness) exists.

The Committee also resolved that when a submission is initially referred by the Speaker to the Committee, the Secretary of the Committee will, and is authorised to, contact the complainant drawing his or her attention to guidelines to the requirement for preparing a brief draft statement in a correct form for incorporation. This assists the Committee as its deliberations, and subsequent recommendation to the House, are on the basis of such statements.

The Committee is aware of the need to ensure that its operating procedures are readily apparent to the public and therefore resolved to report these procedural guidelines to the House with recommendations for the amendment of Sessional Orders.

Recommendations:

The Committee therefore recommends that Sessional Order 7 be amended as follows:

The Committee may only consider applications that are received within six months of the making of the comments in the House unless exceptional circumstances exists.

Upon the Speaker initially referring a submission to the Committee, the Secretary of the Committee must contact the complainant drawing his or her attention to guidelines to the requirement for preparing a brief draft statement in a correct form for incorporation.

Committee Room