SPEAKERS RULINGS SUPPLEMENT

Transcription

1 SPEAKERS RULINGS SUPPLEMENT Rulings from the 51st Parliament, up to 7 July INTRODUCTION This supplement contains rulings made by the Speaker and other presiding officers during the current term of Parliament, up to 7 July It is to be read alongside the 2015 edition of Speakers Rulings. This volume provides an extract of rulings in a readily usable form. It is not itself an authoritative source. That source is in the pages of Hansard from which each ruling is extracted. David Wilson Clerk of the House of Representatives December 2016

2 NUMBERING OF NEW RULINGS 1A after 1 1B after 1A 1AA before 1 2

3 CHAPTER 3 GENERAL PROVISIONS AND OFFICE- HOLDERS RULES OF DEBATE (SOs ) Call to speak Seeking the call 28/4A If the member wants to have a call and I know that you stood up earlier you must call out Mr Chairman. If you do not call, then the call goes to someone else. 2014, Vol. 711, p Tisch (Chairperson). (28 Oct 2014) Speaking Reading speeches 53/4A It is incumbent on the Government to have a Minister at least familiar enough with the material they are presenting to the House that they can make a speech without just reading it out. Otherwise, it becomes a pro forma exercise, and, I think, does not show due respect to the House. 2016, Vol. 711, p Mallard (Assistant Speaker). (9 March 2016) 53/6A It is a strong convention in this House that Ministers giving third reading speeches are entitled to read their speeches. 2016, Vol. 715, p Borrows (Deputy Speaker). (16 June 2016) 3

4 Time limits 54/5A In a time-limited debate, once those calls allocated by the Business Committee are exhausted or not sought, the overall time limit prevails and the call may go to any member seeking the call. 2015, Vol.704, p Tisch (Chairperson). (29 April 2015) Unparliamentary language Government and parties 57/2A There can be no suggestion that a decision being made by any Minister is because of potential [campaign donations]. 2016, Vol. 711, p Carter. (18 February 2016) CLOSURE OF DEBATE (SOs ) 71/4A Closure motions are more likely to be accepted in a shorter time period if Ministers have engaged in a positive manner to non-political technical questions. 2015, Vol. 709, p Mallard (Chairperson). (3 November 2015) PUTTING THE QUESTION (SOs ) Party vote 74/1A Normally the expectation is that members call for a further vote only if they wish to challenge the outcome and have given their voices in the minority. However it is my view that it is in the House s interest for members to be able to record their position when they wish to abstain. (The Assistant Speaker directed that a party vote be held to enable a party to record abstentions, though there were 4

5 no dissenting voices when the question was put that a bill be read a first time.) 2015, Vol. 710, p Mallard (Assistant Speaker). (17 November 2015) 75/4A The purpose of seeking leave [to be absent from the House] from the Speaker, if it is a smaller party, is so that that person is granted leave legitimately and that that vote can therefore be cast in good faith by the whip. 2015, Vol.707, p Carter. (30 July 2015) Proxies 78/5A Without particular evidence, the word of whips or other people casting votes must be taken. 2015, Vol. 707, p Mallard (Assistant Speaker). (22 July 2015) COMMITTEES OF THE WHOLE HOUSE (SOs ) Chairperson 85/1A The Chairperson has a duty to ensure that all sides may take part in the debate and to protect the ability of the minority to participate. He or she does so by listening to the debate, judging relevance, keeping order, and ensuring that members have the opportunity to contribute. 2015, Vol.706, p Carter. (23 June 2015) 5

6 Member in charge of bill 87/2A In deciding who gets the call, members of a select committee [that considered the bill being debated] tend to get some preference. 2015, Vol. 710, p Mallard (Chairperson). (10 November 2015) 87/5A There is some obligation on members, when they have important questions that they want the Minister to respond to, to ask their questions generally within the first 10 minutes of their speaking time rather than after the Minister has responded. 2015, Vol. 707, p Mallard (Chairperson). (19 August 2015) 87/5B The Minister in the chair will decide whether he or she wishes to answer a question. It is not for the presiding officer the Chair to decide whether the Minister in the chair answers questions. 2015, Vol. 707, p Tisch (Chairperson). (20 August 2015) 6

7 CHAPTER 5 LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURES GENERAL PROVISIONS (SOs ) Same bill or amendment 115/1A Bills that are the same in substance as ones read or defeated in the same calendar year will not be permitted into the ballot. 2015, Vol. 709, p Carter. (15 October 2015) COMMITTEE STAGE (SOs ) Amendments 129/3A The Te Reo Māori and English text of this bill have equal authority. Amendments that are in one language are not automatically treated as amending the other text of the bill. If a substantive amendment is to be agreed to by the Committee, it is highly desirable that the text in both Te Reo Māori and English is agreed to. 2016, Vol. 712, p Borrows (Chairperson). (5 April 2016) Relevancy 131/1AA The Clerk s Office will draft amendments for members and circulate them even if they are not in order. The fact that it publishes and circulates a Supplementary Order Paper does not indicate that it is in order. Ultimately, it is up to the Chairperson in the Committee of the whole House to rule on the admissibility of any amendment Vol.714, p Tisch (Chairperson) (24 May 2016) 7

8 CHAPTER 6 FINANCIAL PROCEDURES GOVERNMENT S FINANCIAL VETO (SOs ) 139/1A The Speaker has no role in evaluating the financial veto beyond ensuring that it complies with the Standing Orders. 2016, Vol. 715, p Carter. (16 June 2016) ESTIMATES (SOs ) Estimates debate 142/3A The role of the select committee chair, in speaking in the Estimates debate, is to set out the major findings of their committee in relation to the Estimates. 2015, Vol. 707, p Borrows (Chairperson). (28 July 2015) 144/1A The Business Committee has determined that the Estimates debate will be divided into 10 separate debates covering the sectors set out in the Estimates of Appropriations. Each debate will be led by a call from the chairperson of the select committee nominated by the Government as the major committee reporting on the sector. Committee chairpersons are expected to focus their speeches on the major findings of the committee. 2016, Vol. 715, p Mallard (Chairperson). (6 July 2016) 8

9 ANNUAL REVIEW (SOs ) Departments 145/3A In calling members for the [annual review debate], at some point members must make a reference to the period of expenditure under review or one of the select committee reports. 2015, Vol. 704, p Mallard (Chairperson). (29 April 2015) CHAPTER 7 NON-LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURES PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONS (SOs ) Papers Nature of documents 162/3A What I will require of members when seeking leave to table a document are three things, and that members identify these three things in this order: the source of the document, when it was published or produced, and to very succinctly inform the House of its nature. 2015, Vol.705, p Carter. (5 May 2015) 165/3A Members would be ill-advised to proceed to ask for that leave if they have not done the courtesy of asking [the individuals who signed the letter] whether they are happy for their letter to become public information that could be breaching their privacy. 2015, Vol.704, p Carter. (30 April 2015) 9

10 QUESTIONS TO MINISTERS AND MEMBERS (SOs ) Questions to Ministers Transfer of questions transfer disallowed 168/3(2) (1) The Speaker would only refuse to permit a transfer of a question in very exceptional circumstances such as if the Minister concerned could be expected to have personal knowledge of the issue that it would not be likely that any other Minister would have. (2) In this case, I did not allow the transfer, because of the very specific nature of the question. I determined that the only person who could satisfactorily answer the question that the member has raised was the Minister of Finance, and on that basis I did not allow the transfer. (1) 2000, Vol. 581, p Hunt. (1), (2) 2016, Vol. 712, p Carter. (6 April 2016) Ministerial responsibility subject matter determines responsibility 170/2AA In practice, a wide view is taken of the concept of ministerial responsibility. In each case it will depend on a consideration of the legislative and administrative circumstances surrounding the question. While the Prime Minister is answerable for all actions taken and statements made as Prime Minister, the Prime Minister is not answerable for statements or actions taken as the leader of a political party or in a personal capacity, although this can be a hard distinction to make. A connection having been made to a matter of ministerial responsibility, an informative answer should be given. 10

11 Although considerable weight must be given to Minister s claim that actions or statements were not made in a ministerial capacity, this can never be definitive. Where I judge a question to reveal a reasonable likelihood of a connection to ministerial responsibility, an informative answer must be given. 2014, Vol. 701, pp Carter. (23 October 2014) 170/5A Questions to Ministers relate to a portfolio that a Minister holds, not to an individual person. A question must relate to one portfolio and can only be directed to a Minister about a matter for which he or she is currently responsible and not to a portfolio held previously. The exception is the Prime Minister, who is responsible for all activities of the Government. 2016, Vol. 715, p Carter. (5 July 2016) 170/5B Where a portfolio is defunct, there may be a Minister in a related, successor portfolio. In that case, a question should be directed to that Minister. Ministers have a duty to the House to decide on the appropriate Minister to answer a question and to direct the question to the Minister who holds the portfolio more directly concerned with the subject matter of the question. There will be some instances where there is no clear successor portfolio. The Prime Minister is the head of executive Government and determines the title, scope, and allocation of all ministerial portfolios. Because the Prime Minister is the only one who can disestablish a ministerial portfolio and because of his or her very wide sphere of ministerial responsibility, questions about a portfolio that 11

12 no longer exists should be addressed to the Prime Minister where there is no successor portfolio. There are some limitations on the Prime Minister s responsibility for defunct portfolios. He or she is not responsible for a previous administration. 2016, Vol. 715, p Carter. (5 July 2016) Ministerial responsibility no responsibility for opposition parties 174/1A The Government is not considered by the House to be a single, continuous entity. The defeat of a Government in an election marks the end of one administration and the commencement of another. Ministers in the Government of the day are not responsible for the activities of the previous administration. 2016, Vol. 715, p Carter. (5 July 2016) Contents of questions Form of questions 180/5A Members may ask any number of written questions, and with that ability comes a requirement to ask questions responsibly. Vague or very broad questions make it difficult for a Minister to meet accountability requirements and are less likely to receive an informative answer. 2015, Vol. 708, p Carter. (10 September 2015) 12

13 180/5B A primary question is often longer than a permitted supplementary question. In this case the question contained a very long quote that the member thought was necessary. The question has been allowed and it has been accepted. 2016, Vol. 713, pp Carter. (4 May 2016) Replies Accountability to the House 194/5A Requests under the Official Information Act 1982 may be refused if the information requested is or will soon be publicly available. A question to such a Minister is not a request under the Act and should not be treated as such. While that Act may provide some guidance when replies to questions are being prepared, it does not exempt Ministers from their accountability to the House through the question procedures. The House has established its own rules for replies to questions, and its entitlement to information exceeds that under the Act. 2015, Vol. 708, p Carter. (10 September 2015) Form of reply 196/4A The Speaker cannot insist on an answer that quantifies an amount if the Minister has said that it is impossible to do so. 2015, Vol. 703, p Carter. (10 March 2015) 196/6A I judge the length of answers, and what does determine that, to some extent is the level of interjection that a Minister may be getting. 2015, Vol. 706, p Carter. (4 June 2015) 13

14 Written replies 201/2A A Minister may answer a question by referring a member to information that is already publicly available. That may be the appropriate response where a significant amount of information is requested. However, if a Minister chooses to reply by directing a member to information already available, he or she must do so with some particularity. It is not acceptable to simply state that the information has already been released or that it was provided to a select committee. Rather, the Minister should provide a sufficiently detailed answer to enable the member to directly locate the information. 2015, Vol. 708, pp Carter. (10 September 2015) Urgent questions 205/2A [The acceptance or not of] an urgent question is a decision that I make. I then have a duty to advise the member who wished to ask the urgent question, and I have a duty to advise the Minister. I do not normally make such an announcement in the House. 2015, Vol. 707, p Carter. (20 August 2015) 14

15 DEBATE ON MATTER OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE (SOs ) Administrative or ministerial responsibility 209/1A Although the Minister of Police is answerable to this House for police operational matters, under our system of Government the decision to prosecute or not is not a matter of ministerial responsibility. 2014, Vol. 701, p Carter. (30 October 2014) 2015, Vol. 710, p Carter. (10 November 2015) 210/4A Mt Eden Corrections Facility is managed by a private provider but the prisoners remain the ultimate responsibility of the State It is absolutely critical that the public has confidence in our corrections system. (Application approved for debate on allegations about prisoner activities at Mt Eden Corrections Facility.) 2015, Vol. 707, p Carter. (21 July 2015) Requires immediate attention of the House 214/1A One factor in deciding whether to allow an urgent debate is that the intelligence and security agencies are subject to very little parliamentary scrutiny. 2015, Vol. 709, p Carter. (5 November 2015) Debate 215/7AA It is quite possible that a member can put in for an urgent debate, that it can be considered and a decision can be made, and that if the member is not here for any reason, it can equally be moved by somebody else. 2015, Vol. 708, p Carter. (27 August 2015) 15

16 CHAPTER 10 RULINGS ON STATUTORY AND NON-STANDING ORDERS PROCEDURES APPOINTMENTS 234/2A The process of nomination [for appointments to the Intelligence and Security Committee] is a statutory one. The Speaker has no part in the statutory process but obviously has a concern to ensure that the House operates within the law. Members may move to omit a name of a nominee but they cannot move amendments. The House does not make the appointments. It merely confirms the nominations. It is always open for the House not to endorse a nomination. If this were to happen the Act provides for further consultation or a new nomination to be made to the House. 2015, Vol. 703, p Tisch (Assistant Speaker). (18 February 2015) 234/4A The Speaker does not have a role to set what is required by way of consultation. That is a matter for the law. The Speaker s only role is to determine whether the notice of motion would be ruled out of order. The House cannot by resolution right a failure to comply with the law. 2015, Vol. 703, p Carter. (24 February 2015) 234/4B What is usually accepted is that persons will be informed and have an opportunity to be heard. There is no expectation of agreement. There is, after all, the opportunity to put one s case in debate in the House and 16

17 ultimately the House could decline to endorse a nomination, the consequence of which would be the recommencing of the statutory process, including consultation. 2015, Vol. 703, p Carter. (24 February 2015) 17

18 INDEX absent from party vote 75/4A abstentions party vote to record 74/1A acceptance of closure motions 71/4A of urgent questions 205/2A amendments to bills admissibility 131/1AA agreement of Te Reo text 129/3A authority of Te Reo and English texts 129/3A relevancy 131/1AA same in substance 115/1A annual review debate calling members 145/3A appointments to Intelligence and Security Committee consultation requirements 234/4A House s endorsement 234/4B nominations 234/2A role of debate 234/4B Speaker s role 234/4A authority of Te Reo texts of amendments 129/3A bills, same in substance 115/1A calls in debate on 28/4A, 87/2A questions to Ministers on 87/5A, 87/5B call, the 87/2A seeking 28/4A campaign donations and unparliamentary language 57/2A chairperson judging relevance 85/1A role in debate 85/1A and questions to Ministers 87/5A closure of debate 71/4A committee of whole House 85/1A calls in 87/2A chair s role 85/1A, 87/5A chair s responsibility re questions to Minister 87/5B deciding who gets call 87/2A questions to Ministers 87/5A, 87/5B relevance in 85/1A relevancy, amendments 131/1AA timing of questions to Ministers 87/5A consultation on appointments to Intelligence and Security Committee 234/4A corrections facilities ministerial responsibility 210/4A debate call 28/28/4A closure 71/4A Estimates 142/3A rules 28/4A, 53/4A time-limited 54/5A see also debate on matter of urgent public importance debate on matter of urgent public importance corrections system 210/4A intelligence and security agencies 214/1A ministerial responsibility 209/1A, 210/4A police matters 209/1A prosecution decisions 209/1A who can move 215/7AA 18

19 disallowed transfer of questions to Ministers 168/3(2) documents, tabling of 162/3A, 165/3A Estimates debate role of select committee chair 142/3A structure 144/1A financial veto certificates evaluation 139/1A interjections (and length of questions) 196/6A intelligence and security agencies 214/1A leave to be absent from party vote 78/4A letters permission of signatory to table 165/3A ministerial responsibility corrections facilities 210/4A police operations 209/1A determined by subject of question 170/2AA portfolios 170/5A portfolios, defunct 170/5B previous Government 174/1A Prime Minister 170/2AA, 170/5B prosecution decisions 209/1A nominations for Intelligence and Security Committee 234/2A, 234/4A, 234/4B party votes absence from 75/4A abstentions 74/1A proxies 78/5A putting the question 74/1A recording abstentions 74/1A, 75/4A seeking leave to be absent 75/4A police matters and ministerial responsibility 209/1A privacy and tabling of letters 165/3A prosecutions not within Minister s responsibility 201/4A proxies 78/5A putting the question in party votes 74/1A, 75/4A questions to Ministers committee of the whole House 87/5A, 87/5B decision whether to respond 87/5B disallowance of transfer 168/3(2) form of questions 180/5A, 180/5B informative answers required 170/2AA ministerial capacity 170/2AA ministerial responsibility 170/2AA, 170/5A, 170/5B, 174/1A number permissible 180/5A transfer of 168/3(2) replies to 180/5A, 194/5A requests under Official Information Act 194/5A timing in committee of the whole House 87/5A urgent 205/2A vague or broad 180/5A written replies 201/2A reading of speeches 53/4A, 53/6A 19

20 relevancy amendments 131/1AA committee of the whole House 85/1A replies to questions form of reply 196/4A, 196/6A length of 196/4A Official Information Act 194/5A reference to information already publicly available 201/2A seeking quantified reply 196/4A vague or broad 180/5A written 201/2A rules of debate reading of speeches 53/4A seeking the call 28/4A time-limited debate 54/5A unparliamentary language reference to potential campaign donations 57/2A urgent debate police matters 209/1A corrections facilities 210/4A intelligence and security agencies 214/1A who can move motion 215/7AA urgent questions acceptance of 205/2A same amendment as one previously defeated 115/1A same bill as one previously read or defeated 115/1A seeking the call proper manner 28/4A time-limited debates 54/5A speeches, prohibition on reading of 53/4A tabling of documents information required for leave 162/3A letters 165/3A privacy 165/3A seeking leave to table 162/3A, 165/3A Te Reo texts of amendments 129/3A timed debates unallocated calls 54/5A transfer of questions to Ministers 168/3(2) 20