The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Parliamentary Standards is launching its first inquiry into the Behaviour Codes and Standards in Commonwealth Parliamentary Workplaces.
The inquiry will inquire into and report on the operation and effectiveness of the:
- Behaviour Standards for Commonwealth Parliamentary Workplaces;
- Behaviour Code for Australian Parliamentarians; and
- Behaviour Code for staff employed under the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984.
This will be the committee’s first inquiry into the codes, which were adopted by each House in October 2024. The joint committee is chaired by Ms Anne Stanley MP, with Senator Kerrynne Liddle as Deputy Chair.
‘This is an opportunity for the committee to hear directly from people working in Commonwealth parliamentary workplaces about how the codes are functioning,’ Ms Stanley said.
Ms Stanley explained that the inquiry is limited to the examination of the behaviour codes themselves. As set out in the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service Act 2023, the committee is not authorised to investigate conduct issues, reconsider a decision made by the decision-maker for a conduct issue or give or seek advice about a particular person or conduct issue.
The inquiry fulfils the committee’s obligations under the PWSS Act to commence a review that considers the operation and effectiveness of each code within one year of the commencement of the first session of each Parliament.
For more information about the committee, you can visit its website. On the site, you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track Committee’ button in the bottom right hand corner of the page.
