3.2. Parliamentary Law Reform

Parliamentary Committees[1]

One of the formal ways law reform can be undertaken is by making a submission to a parliamentary committee (the Commonwealth, states and territories all have similar processes).  The role of a parliamentary committee is to examine a legal issue and/or proposed law by holding public inquiries that receive written submissions and oral evidence from members of the public, organisations and experts.

 

What is a Parliamentary Committee?

A Parliamentary Committee is a group of Members of Parliament, appointed by the Parliament, to investigate policy issues, proposed legislation or government activities. The membership of these Committees tends to reflect the diverse political make-up of the House (Upper or Lower) from which they are drawn. The work of Parliament has become more complex. Members have to consider an increasing range of issues and legislation. At the same time more people in the community want to participate in the democratic process. Committees allow Parliamentarians to examine an issue in more detail and with greater public input than if either House as a whole considered the matter.

Parliamentary Committees provide an opportunity for individuals and groups to put their views directly to Parliamentarians. Members of the public can:

-       make submissions

-       give oral evidence

-       attend public hearings, and

-       obtain copies of reports.

 

Parliamentary Inquiries

In most cases, one of the Houses or a Minister refers inquiries to a Committee. The terms of reference define the scope of an inquiry and are determined by the House or the Minister responsible for referring the inquiry.

A committee will often start its inquiry by calling for submissions from the public and relevant organisations. The inquiry's terms of reference are usually advertised in the appropriate newspapers and are published on this Internet site. These should be followed by people making a submission. Anyone can make a submission but people or organisations with specialist knowledge or representative views may be invited to make a submission.

After the committee has examined all the submissions, witnesses may be invited to give oral evidence. This allows committee members to speak directly to people about matters relevant to an inquiry and seek clarification or further details about issues raised in a submission. Members of the public may observe these hearings, although sometimes they occur in private.

In addition to calling for submissions and taking evidence, committees may canvass public opinion on the issues raised by an inquiry in a number of other ways. These include seminars, conferences, study tours, workshops and round-table discussions.

 

Committee Reports

After considering all the submissions, evidence and its own research, the committee produces a report. This is tabled in the House that initiated the inquiry and includes the committee's findings and recommendations. The tabling of a report provides an opportunity for all members of the House to debate the findings. The committee's formal involvement in an issue effectively ends with the tabling of its report.

Committee reports are public documents and are widely distributed. A copy of a report or a summary is sent to everyone who made a submission, appeared as a witness, or requests a copy from the committee office. Committee reports are also available at the State Libraries and university libraries.

After a report is tabled, the Government must respond to the referring house within six months, outlining its recommendations for action. The Government is not obliged to implement the committee's recommendations but must explain why it has decided not to carry out some or all of them. A copy of the Government's response is sent to everybody who made a submission or gave evidence. Others can get a copy through the committee office or from this internet site.

 

Law reform impacting Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people[2]

The process of garnering support or preparing submissions for law and policy affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people places additional focus on:

-       respect for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander culture when considering both consequences and reasons for reform;

-       extensive consultations with community to determine existing issues and what could be practicable options for reform;

-       community ownership of changes for the community, when possible;

-       recognising underlying social issues which may not be automatically ‘solved’ with a change in laws.

The Following table outlines a number of examples of contemporary law reform that have had a particular impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia.