Parliament House : News from the Hill

This week in the House - a summary of expected business in the House of Representatives for the week beginning 1 December 2008 - is now available from our website.

On Monday 24 November, the Federal Parliament’s Treaties Committee will hear evidence on the impact of climate change on Australia’s agricultural sector as part of its inquiry into the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol in Australia.

As Australia battles an economic downturn due to the global credit crunch, there should be heightened interest in the views of the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Glenn Stevens on interest rates, growth and inflation when he next fronts the House of Representatives Economics Committee’s public hearing at Parliament House in Canberra on Friday 20 February 2009.

The Joint Standing Committee on Treaties has been invited by the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to undertake an inquiry into Australia’s involvement in nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament treaties.

The ParlReplay of Question Time of 12 November 2008 is now available in streaming video from the About the House website.


The video is available as in Flash format, in both high and low resolution formats. A Question Time extract of Hansard (the transcript of proceedings) is also available from the page.


This video content will be available from the site for approximately one month.

The ParlReplay of Question Time of 11 November 2008 is now available in streaming video from the About the House website.


The video is available as in Flash format, in both high and low resolution formats. A Question Time extract of Hansard (the transcript of proceedings) is also available from the page.


This video content will be available from the site for approximately one month.

The ParlReplay of Question Time of 10 November 2008 is now available in streaming video from the About the House website.


The video is available as in Flash format, in both high and low resolution formats. A Question Time extract of Hansard (the transcript of proceedings) is also available from the page.


This video content will be available from the site for approximately one month.

A group of seven parliamentarians from Afghanistan are undertaking an historic visit to the Australian Parliament this week.

A federal parliamentary committee report offers a new approach to funding infrastructure such as public halls, sporting facilities, social clubs and tourist attractions across regional and local communities.

The House of Representatives Health Committee will travel to Western Australia this week to visit a thriving communal community garden in West Leederville and also hear from leading community health experts on how to counter obesity.

The Public Works Committee is conducting an inquiry into a major proposal by the Department of Defence (Defence) to redevelop the Puckapunyal Base in Seymour, Victoria.

The House of Representatives Petitions Committee is holding its first public hearing with petitioners in Melbourne on Thursday, 30 October. People who have already presented petitions to the House will speak to the Petitions Committee about their concerns.

The 2009 Parliamentary Sitting Calendar has been released and is now available to download from our website.

The calendar is available in PDF format, with HTLM, text-only and iCalendar versions to follow.

The Chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government tabled the Committee’s report into coastal shipping policy and regulation in Parliament on Monday 20 October 2008.

The House of Representatives Family and Community Committee will hear evidence from two national peak organisations, the Mental Health Council of Australia (MHCA) and the National Council on Intellectual Disability (NCID), at a public hearing to be held in Parliament House on Wednesday 22 October, between 10.15 am and 11.15 am.

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit will hold a public hearing in Canberra on 22 October 2008 to finalise its inquiry into the effect of the efficiency dividend on small agencies.

The ParlReplay of Question Time of 16 October 2008 is now available in streaming video from the About the House website.


The video is available as in Flash format, in both high and low resolution formats. A Question Time extract of Hansard (the transcript of proceedings) is also available from the page.


This video content will be available from the site for approximately one month.

Protecting whistleblowers


House Legal Committee investigates new laws to protect whistleblowers


An inquiry by the House of Representatives Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee is looking for ways to provide better protection for those who speak out about problems in their federal government departments.


A roundtable hearing heard from whistleblower expert Dr A.J. Brown from Griffith University who said the inquiry presents a great opportunity.

The chair of the Parliament’s Treaties Committee Kelvin Thomson has tabled the Committee’s Report 95. The reports reviews 12 proposed treaty actions, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; the Australia-Chile Free Trade Agreement.

The council representing major food and drink manufacturers such as Coca-Cola Amatil, Nestle, Kelloggs and Cadbury Schweppes , along with public health advocates like the Heart Foundation and Nutrition Australia , will be attending a Melbourne public hearing for an inquiry into obesity.

The outcomes of the electronic voting trials at the 2007 Federal election, conducted for people who are blind or have low vision and also for selected Australian Defence Force personnel serving overseas, will be one of the main issues to be examined by Federal parliament’s Electoral Matters Committee at a public hearing on Friday 17 October.

Better recognition of volunteers, a broader definition of volunteering and greater encouragement of young volunteers are among key issues raised in a discussion paper presented to federal parliament on 13 October by the House of Representatives Family and Community Committee.

The human toll of F-111s


Inquiry into the Deseal-Reseal process in the F-111 squadron.


F-111s have been a key part of Australia’s defence strategy since the 1970s, but keeping these ageing strike bombers in the air has come at a terrible human cost.


The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade is inquiring into the RAAF F-111 Deseal-Reseal workers and their families.

Carers at breaking point


Many of Australia's 2.5 million carers are living on the edge.


The House Committee on Family, Community, Housing and Youth has heard of the challenges facing the people who look after our sick, disabled and elderly during hearings across Australia.


This segment of About the House TV program reviews some of the evidence presented to the Committee at a recent Roundtable.


The committee is seeking ways to provide better support to carers.

Every second counts - fighting the food allergy epidemic


As the number of children suffering life-threatening food allergies continues to increase, federal MPs are looking for ways to help protect anaphylactic children while in the care of school, preschools and day care.


This episode of About the House TV first screened in March 2007.


To view this six minute program segment and to read more this issue in the PDF version of the accompanying About the House magazine article, visit the ATH web page

The parliamentary Human Right Sub-Committee is set to examine international and regional human rights mechanisms and models for the Asia-Pacific in its new inquiry.

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Innovation will hold the final public hearing for its inquiry into research training and research workforce issues at Parliament House on Wednesday (24 September).

Federal parliament’s Treaties Committee has released a report recommending against ratifying an agreement with the Russian Federation on cooperation in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes until Russia meets certain conditions to guard against use of this uranium in weapons. If this agreement proceeds, it will, for the first time, allow Australia to provide uranium for use in Russia ’s nuclear power plants.

Interviews with participants at a Parliament House architecture roundtable for 20th anniversary of the building

The September 2008 issue of the About the House magazine is available from our website in PDF format.


About the House is a free colour feature magazine produced up to five times a year by the Liaison and Projects Office of the House of Representatives. It covers the varied work of Members of the House, especially Committee investigations. The magazine is available through the offices of every Member of the House of Representatives, or can be ordered directly through the Liaison and Projects Office (telephone: freecall 1800 139 299, email: liaison.reps@aph.gov.au).

Australia’s Free Trade Agreement with the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) will be the major topic for discussion on 12 September when Parliament's Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee conducts its first public hearing as part of its inquiry into Australia’s relationship with ASEAN.


Announcing the public hearing, Sub-Committee Chairman Michael Danby said the committee is keen to be advised of details of the FTA with ASEAN when the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade appears before it in Canberra on Friday.


Members of the public and the media are welcome to attend the public hearing in Committee Room 1R1, Parliament House in Canberra.


Full details, including the public hearing program and links to the Inquiry website are available from the About the House news page.

The Federal Parliament’s Treaties Committee has released a report supporting amendments to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora subject to a number of recommendations.


The Convention, known as CITES, provides for international cooperation to protect and conserve species of fauna and flora from over-exploitation due to international trade.


The Committee has recommended that the Australian Government continue to monitor and assess the impact of trade in this species, which is considered critically endangered internationally. It has also made several recommendations concerning the policies and procedures associated with the protection of the species under Australian domestic law.


For more information, visit the About the House news page

The House of Representatives Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Committee will hold a second public hearing in Western Australia on 12 September as part of its inquiry into developing Indigenous enterprises.


The hearing will be held from 9.00 am to 12.30 pm, in Room 230, Centre of Aboriginal Studies, Curtin University of Technology, Bentley WA.


Members of the public and media are welcome to attend the public hearing.


More details, including a full program are available from the About the House website

The Migration Committee will be holding a public hearing in Melbourne on Thursday 11 September as part of a newly defined direction for its inquiry into immigration detention.


In Melbourne, the Committee will be hearing from a range of witnesses including the Australian Red Cross, the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, the Justice Project and the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law.


They will also be visiting Maribyrnong Immigration Detention Centre, Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation, and the Asylum Seekers Resource Centre in West Melbourne.


Members of the public and media are welcome to attend the public hearing.


Full details of the public hearing and links to the inquiry home page are available from our About the House web page.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives Harry Jenkins has announced the launch of a new website featuring the work of the House of Representatives and its committees.


About the House, the House of Representatives news and features website, is available at: www.aph.gov.au/ath


This website includes a range of video news items from parliamentary committee investigations, replays of recent Question Times, House highlights such as the Apology to Australia’s Indigenous Peoples, plus a documentary on the people who built Parliament House 20 years ago.


Subscribers to this RSS feed will be alerted when new content is added to the site, including the daily upload of the Question Time replay.

The House Economics Committee announced the next public hearing with the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia will be in Melbourne on Monday 8 September during the release of its report into the previous hearing.

The House of Representatives Climate Change, Water, Environment and the Arts Committee is to conduct an inquiry into climate change and environmental impacts on Australian coastal communities.

The House Health Committee is to conduct a new inquiry into obesity in Australia.