Our parliament: 5. how the parliament works

5.1 What is the Parliament of Australia?

The Parliament of Australia consists of:

• The Queen represented by Australia’s Governor-General
• The Australian Senate
• The Australian House of Representatives.

The Parliament of Australia (formally named the Parliament of the Commonwealth) is made up of a total of 226 people popularly elected to the Senate and House of Representatives to represent the interests of Australians and to ‘make laws for the peace, order and good government of the nation’ (section 51 Australian Constitution).

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5.2 What does the Parliament of Australia do?

The Australian Parliament has four main functions:

1. Law-making
• The Parliament makes national laws on behalf of the Australian people.
2. Representation
• The Parliament represents the views and interests of Australian citizens, parties and other groups.
3. Formation of government
• The Parliament forms government from the party (or coalition of parties) which achieve a majority in the House of Representatives following a federal election.
4. Scrutiny
   • The Parliament scrutinises the work of executive government; especially its spending of public money.

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5.3 Where is the Parliament of Australia?

The Parliament of Australia meets at Parliament House Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory. Canberra is the capital of Australia and the centre of Australian governance.

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5.4 When does the Parliament of Australia meet?

There are three annual parliamentary sitting periods during which neither house adjourns for more than 20 days. They are the autumn sitting between February and April, the winter sitting between May and June and the spring sitting between August and December. During a sitting the Parliament usually meets for two consecutive weeks each month. During a sitting week, the House of Representatives and Senate conduct business from Monday to Thursday, but on occasions sit at nights, Fridays and over the weekend.

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5.5 Who are members of parliament?

Members of parliament (MPs) are elected representatives of the Australian population. Also known as parliamentarians, members of parliament are either members of the House of Representatives or senators of the Senate.

The table below lists the different roles of members and senators in each chamber.

Role	House of Representatives	Senate
Presiding officers	Speaker of the House of Representatives	President of the Senate
Leader of the government	Prime Minister of Australia	Leader of the Government in the Senate
Leader of the opposition	Leader of the Opposition	Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
Heads of government departments	Ministers	Ministers
Senior opposition members	Shadow ministers	Shadow ministers
Junior members	Backbenchers	Backbenchers

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5.6 What is the House of Representatives?

The House of Representatives is made up of men and women elected to represent the people in one of Australia’s 150 electorates. These parliamentarians are also called members. There are currently 150 members of the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives is also known as the lower house, the people's house and the green chamber.

The House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Australia; the other is the Senate.

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5.7 What is the Senate?

The Senate is made up of men and women elected to represent the people in one of Australia’s six states or two territories. These parliamentarians are known as senators. There are currently 76 senators. The Senate is also known as the upper house, the states’ house and the red chamber.

The Senate is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Australia; the other is the House of Representatives.

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5.8 What happens in the two chambers?

The Senate and the House of Representatives follow a daily agenda respectively called the Order of Business and Daily Program. During sitting weeks chamber routine usually includes:

1. Prayers
2. Government business
   • Government business usually involves the introduction of bills and/or debating and voting on bills.
   • Time is set aside on Mondays in the House of Representatives for the introduction of private members’ bills. (Private senators’ bills are treated as government business)
3. Question Time.
   • Question Time usually occurs at 2pm each sitting day.
   • Question Time gives members and senators the opportunity to question and scrutinise the performance of executive government.
4. Matters of Public Importance (MPI)
• The MPI session is usually initiated by a non-government party on a current issue.
5. Adjournment debate
   • The adjournment debate consists of a series of short speeches on matters of electoral, state or national interest. The debate is held at the end of the each day.
6. Other business
   • Other business in the chambers may include the presentation of petitions, referral of inquiries to parliamentary committees and tabling of committee reports.

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5.9 What is the Main Committee?

The Main Committee is the House of Representatives' second or supplementary chamber. The Main Committee operates on Wednesday and Thursday mornings of sitting weeks at the same time as the House of Representatives chamber. The Main Committee exists to give members of the House of Representatives more time and opportunity to debate bills that are not considered controversial, consider committee reports and make three minute speeches. The Main Committee can only consider matters referred to it by the House of Representatives.

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5.10 What are the standing orders?

The House of Representatives and the Senate are run according to the standing orders which state the rules of each chamber. The House of Representatives and Senate have their own standing orders—they are similar but not the same. The President and the Speaker work with the clerks in each chamber to apply the standing orders so that the Parliament operates legally and accurately. The Parliament can and does change the standing orders. Parliament may vote to suspend standing orders so that something special or unusual can occur.

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5.11 How is the government formed?

The government is formed from the largest party or coalition of parties in the House of Representatives, following a federal election. Even though government is formed in the House of Representatives, members of the government also belong to the Senate. The current government consists of a total of 115 members; 83 in the House of Representatives and 32 in the Senate. The current government is made up of members of the Australian Labor Party (ALP).

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5.12 What is the role of the government backbench?

The government backbench represents the interests of state and electorate based constituents and supports executive government business including:

• proposals for new or altered laws
• proposals for policy and agenda reform
• support for ministers during Question Time.

Members of the government backbench strive to maintain the support of the Australian electorate. If the government loses a federal election, it is most likely that the opposition will become the new government.

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5.13 How is executive government formed?

Executive government is made up of senior members of the government and includes the Prime Minister and approximately 30 ministers. Since government is formed in the House of Representatives the Prime Minister is usually a member of that house. Ministers, however, may belong to either the House of Representatives or the Senate and therefore may be either members or senators.

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5.14 What is the role of executive government?

Ministers of executive government run government business, develop policy and are in control of government departments which administer the laws passed by the Parliament. Ministers are assisted in their executive role by the public service.

Executive government has two major roles:

• policy-making
• policy implementation.

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5.15 How is the opposition formed?

The opposition is the second largest party or coalition of parties in the House of Representatives, following a federal election. Even though opposition is formed in the House of Representatives, members of the opposition also sit in the Senate. The current opposition consists of a total of 102 members; 65 in the House of Representatives and 37 in the Senate. The current opposition includes a coalition of members of the Liberal Party of Australia (LPA), and the Nationals (NATS). There is also one Country Liberal Party (CLP) senator.

5.16 What does the opposition do?

The opposition examines the actions and decisions of the government and questions the government on policies and bills. This is called scrutiny. Members of the opposition also represent the interests of state and electorate based constituents and provide the people of Australia with alternative policy to the government.

An effective opposition sets out to scrutinise the government and hold it accountable for its actions. The opposition calls on ministers to explain their administrative decisions and actions during Question Time in both chambers and examins government expenditure during Senate estimates committees.

The opposition is the alternative government. If the opposition party wins a federal election it becomes the new government.

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5.17 Who is the Prime Minister of Australia?

The Prime Minister is the leader of the government.

By convention, the Prime Minister sits in the House of Representatives and is elected by the party or parties which win the majority of seats in this house.

The Prime Minister is also a member of parliament. Under section 64 of the Australian Constitution ‘no minister of state shall hold office for a longer period than three months unless he is or becomes a senator or a member of the House of Representatives’. Thus the current Prime Minister of Australia and leader of the government, the Honourable Kevin Rudd MP, is also the member for Griffith —a south Brisbane electorate.

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5.18 What does the Prime Minister do?

The Prime Minister is the leader of the party or coalition of parties that form government in the House of Representatives. The Prime Minister also represents Australia in major national or international events.

The Prime Minister chairs meetings of the Cabinet which is a group of senior ministers who make important decisions about running the country.

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5.19 Who is the Leader of the Opposition?

The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the party that is the opposition.

The Leader of the Opposition sits in the House of Representatives and is elected by the party or parties which win the second largest number of seats in this house.

The Leader of the Opposition is also a member of parliament. Thus the current Leader of the Opposition, the Honourable Dr Brendan Nelson MP is also the Member for Bradfield —a north Sydney electorate.

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5.20 What does the Leader of the Opposition do?

The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the second largest party or coalition of parties in the House of Representatives. The Leader of the Opposition is in charge of the shadow Cabinet, which is the group of shadow ministers who shadow government ministers. The Leader of the Opposition is the alternative Prime Minister.

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5.21 Who is the Leader of the Government in the Senate?

The Leader of the Government in the Senate has responsibility for the government in the Senate, but does not have the same power as the Prime Minister. The Leader of the Government in the Senate leads the government in debating bills. The current Leader of the Government in the Senate is Senator the Honourable Christopher Evans.

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5.22 Who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate?

The Leader of the Opposition in the Senate has responsibility for the opposition in the Senate, but does not have the same power as the Leader of the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition in the Senate leads the opposition in debating bills. The current Leader of the Opposition in the Senate is Senator the Honourable Nick Minchin.

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5.23 What do ministers do?

Ministers are senior government members in the House of Representatives and the Senate who are in charge of government departments. Ministers and their departments prepare new laws and propose changes to old laws which need updating or improving. Ministers are expected to answer questions in parliament about their work and the work of their departments. As part of executive government, ministers make and support government policy decisions.

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5.24 What do shadow ministers do?

Shadow ministers are members of the opposition who shadow or watch government ministers on behalf of the opposition. Shadow ministers put pressure on ministers to do their jobs properly. They are spokespersons for opposition policies and meet in the shadow Cabinet. A shadow minister might expect to be a minister if the opposition wins government.

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5.25 What do frontbenchers do?

Frontbenchers are members and senators who are ministers or shadow ministers. They in the frontbenches in the chamber—hence the name.

Frontbenchers are:

• senior members of the government and opposition
• key decision makers
• spokespeople for party policies and decisions.

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5.26 What do backbenchers do?

Backbenchers are members and senators who are not ministers or shadow ministers. Backbenchers sit in the <