The rules on the admittance of visitors or ‘strangers’ within the parliamentary chambers have a long history in the Westminster tradition of parliamentary practice. Over the past 30 years there has been a dramatic increase in the representation of women in Parliament and some of them have given birth while in office. In response to...

Most efforts to assess the performance of parliamentary committees have focused on anecdotal reporting, which is unreliable. This paper argues that it is both possible and valuable to assess their impact quantitatively. The few studies that have collected quantitative information have been small in scale and have not used recognised sampling methods. The approach suggested...

Parliamentary salaries, allowances and entitlements generate public discussion and attract media opinion. This background note provides relevant data, hyperlinks and documents on the remuneration of Australian federal parliamentarians. It explains the legislative basis, fixing and linking mechanisms for salaries and allowances, and those entitlements that are reported such as travel and electorate allowances. Links to...

This report discusses the roles, functions and procedures of the modern Australian shadow cabinet. It aims to redress the shortage of material on the Shadow Cabinet, and provide the reader with a better understanding of what the Shadow Cabinet does and how it operates.

This research paper provides comprehensive information on the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984 (Cth) (MoPS Act) employment framework including recent developments, staff figures, and staffing trends. The paper also updates and expands a previous Parliamentary Library publication on employment issues associated with the MoPS Act. The following employment issues are considered: • the adequacy...