62nd Westminster Seminar on Parliamentary Practice and Procedure

17th to 21st of June 2013

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

Western Australia represented by

Nathan Morton MLA Member for Forrestfield

Introduction

As a newly elected member of Parliament, it was a great opportunity to attend the 62nd Westminster Seminar in London in June of this year. Being a new member, it gave me great exposure and insight into the Westminster system and its procedures and practices. It was good to be able to hear from delegates from all around the Commonwealth as well as members of the UK Parliament. The CPA UK were most gracious hosts.

This Westminster seminar was held from 17th June – 21st of June in London at Westminster Palace. The aim of this seminar was to give delegates a comprehensive look at the workings of the Westminster System, it was appropriate that this occur at the birth place of the system we use here in Western Australia.

There were a record number of delegates at the 62nd Seminar from countries across the world. There were also several of my colleagues from other States in Australia as well. This seminar was also open to Clerks of the Parliaments across the Commonwealth. Some sessions were combined others were tailored to Members of Parliament and to the Clerks.

There were several highlights to the programme including Prime Minister’s question time, constituency visits and visiting the Speaker’s Suite in Westminster Palace.

Having attended this seminar, I left thinking that Western Australia as a jurisdiction that operates under the Westminster system, has a well‐established and robust democratic system of government.

I am grateful to have been afforded this opportunity to represent Western Australia at the seminar.

Seminar Programme

Monday 17th June Welcome and Introduction

Upon arrival at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster we were ushered into Portcullis House, which sits over the road from the Palace of Westminster, however as I was to discover later was linked by a tunnel under the road to the Palace. The security was definitely very tight.

We were welcomed to the Seminar by the Rt Hon Sir Alan Haselhurst, who I have since been in contact with. He is the Chiar of the International and CPA UK Executive Committees. We were also welcomed by the Director of the International and Commonwealth Relations and Secretary CPA UK, Mr Andrew Tuggey DL. Both made all the delegates feel very welcomed in the UK.

Session 1: Introduction to the UK Parliament

This session was designed to introduce delegates to the Westminster system and give an overview of the structure of the Parliament, including its history and some of the current issues that were currently being debated. The history was extremely interesting and the development from the Monarchy, to the House of Lords and also to the House of Commons.

Some of the current issues were of particular interest. The UK was experiencing a phenomenon at the moment with a new political party called the UK Independence Party and they had been polling around the 25 percent mark. Locally it was believed that this was due to some sections of the community becoming a little disillusioned with the current government.

There was also debate at the time around a timetable for a referendum on whether or not the UK should leave the European Union, I imagine we will see this play out in the years ahead as the UK heads towards its 2015 General Election.

Session 2: The legislative Process

This session provided some insight into the passage of bills within the UK Parliamentary system. Some of the interesting facts that I discovered in this session were things such as when Members wanted to make amendments to the legislation they were allowed 50 words for explanatory notes to the amendments.

I also discovered that in the UK system, only 13 Fridays are allocated to Private Member’s Bills. Apparently this is done on what appeared to be a lucky hat drawer, in that about 440 names go in and only twenty come out.

Session 3: Running Parliament

The running of the UK Parliament was an interesting session for me, as one could imagine managing the site alone is an arduous task given its sheer size and of course its age. The number of people who are employed at the UK Parliament is also staggering. Sir Robert Rogers KCB, Clerk of the House of Commons and Mr David Beamish, Clerk of the Parliaments, House of Lords gave us some great insight into running one of the oldest establishments in the world. Session 4: Bicameralism – the work of the second Chamber

For me, this session was of particular interest. Hearing firsthand about the House of Lords was fascinating. There are currently around 754 members to the House of Lords, in fact not enough space for them all to fit in the Chamber at once. Many do not attend sitting days and appointments are done in several ways. Hereditary membership was done away with in 1999, however there is no upper limit to the numbers that can be appointed. Included in the membership are the Bishops and Archbishops which make up 26 of the House of Lords total numbers.

The discussion on Bicameralism was very interesting, hearing how it is done in the UK and then hearing from our very own Speaker in the Queensland Parliament, the Hon Fiona Simpson MP who is Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. She gave an interesting account of how things are done in Queensland, given they are a jurisdiction that had Bicameralism and now operates under a Unicameralism system.

Session 5: Parliamentary Questions and Motions

This session gave an insight into how Parliamentary Questions were asked. Obviously with the sheer numbers of members to the Chambers, getting the chance to ask a question in the Parliament doesn’t come around very often. There are around 650 Members in the House of Commons.

Tuesday 18th June – Split Day – Members and Clerks Session 6: The Role of an MP

It was interesting hearing from UK Members of Parliament about what it meant to be an MP. Inevitably it was very similar across the Commonwealth. The strategies and practices used were fairly universal. The panel members talked about door knocking, leaflet dropping, social media and community events. They also talked about the different parts to the role, the Parliamentary role, the Party representation and the Constituency representation. They also said that wherever possible try to translate work from your constituency into the Parliament.

Session 7: The Role of the Opposition

It was interesting hearing from the Rt Hon Jack Straw who was the Secretary of State under the former Blair Administration. He gave great insight into the joys of being in Government as opposed to opposition, this is a sentiment I have heard echoed many times already. He also said that during their time in Government they had a very effective opposition and that an effective opposition can really set the agenda for the political debate. Obviously he also stated that a good opposition is needed to hold the government of the day to account.

Session 8: Party Discipline in the Parliament

This session focussed primarily on the role of the Whip. Of course it was interesting to compare Western Australia with the UK Parliament. In WA, we have 59 Lower House members, whereas in the UK there are around 650 members. There are also two pubs which are located just off site, but still screen the sessions on TV’s in the pubs and have bells that ring in the pubs as well so that members can make it back in time for divisions and the like. The Whip and Shadow Whip gave some entertaining commentary on some of the events that have occurred over the years with regards to various members and their antics at times.

Session 9: The Role of the Leader of the House

The Leader of the House is obviously there to organise Government Business within the Parliament. It is a very important role for a Government as this person is responsible for progressing the Government’s legislative agenda. In the UK, the House of Commons sits for 150 days a year, however for various reasons, only half of these days are available to the Government. So this means in about 75 days a year, the Government of the day needs to be able to progress its legislation.

Session 10: The Role of the Media in the Oversight of the Parliament

It was interesting to hear from UK Members of Parliament, that “MP‐bashing” had become quite a popular past time within the UK, primarily driven by the tabloid media. They also made the point that quite the opposite existed for local media in constituencies. Often, in the local media, the coverage was far more reasonable about what the Member of Parliament was up to and what issues they were working on within their constituency. It was also noted by presenters that the UK was still recovering from the expenses scandal that had rocked the public faith in MP’s over recent years and re‐establishing trust with the electorate was taking some time and this was hampered by, what appeared to them, to be a desire by tabloid media to report MP’s in a negative light.

Reception at Marlborough House

At the end of the day we were transported to the ornate Marlborough House for a reception hosted by the very welcoming CPA UK Branch. This was a great opportunity to interact with delegates from other Commonwealth nations and a nice end to the day. The picture of all the delegates was taken in the grounds of Marlborough House.

Wednesday 19th June Session 11: The Committee System

It was interesting to hear about how other jurisdictions use the Committee System. Some countries talked about the corruption that existed in their Governments and how the Committee System was thwarted so as not to expose a Government. There was general agreement that the Select or Departmental Committee System is the usual vehicle for holding the Executive to account.

Session 12: Workshop Session on the Committee System

This session was far more informal and once again a great chance to interact with delegates from other countries to hear about some of the issues they face with their committee system.

Session 13: Holding the Prime Minister to Account – Prime Minister’s Questions

At Westminster, the Prime Minister appears once a week in Parliament to answer questions. This session is dedicated to questions direct to the Prime Minster of the day.

Session 14: Standards, Privileges and the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards was set up by the House of Commons in 1995. It was set up to advise the government on ethical standards across the whole of public life in the UK. The role of the Commissioner is to maintain four Registers, to provide confidential advice to Members, to advise the Committee on Standards and Privileges, to monitor the Code and Registers and to investigate breaches of the rules.

Session 15: The Working Parliament

This session was a highlight as we were ushered into the House of Commons to watch Ministerial Questions within the Chamber. It was fascinating to watch a question time taking place in another Parliament. As a new member of Parliament it was interesting to note that while we all operate under the Westminster System, there are certainly variations around various jurisdictions.

Session 16: Devolution

Devolution is a sensitive issue in many countries around the world. In the United Kingdom, devolution refers to the statutory granting of powers from the Parliament of the United Kingdom to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly and to their associated executive bodies the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive.

Devolution differs from federalism in that the devolved powers of the subnational authority ultimately reside in central government. Legislation creating devolved parliaments or assemblies can be repealed or amended by central government in the same way as any statute. In the UK they are currently dealing with a potential referendum of Independence in Scotland in 2014.

Session 17: Electoral Systems

What I realised during this session is that the UK has a very complex electoral system using different methods for different areas. First past the post is used to elect MP’s to the House of Commons and for local elections in England and Wales, whereas, a Single Transferrable Vote is used for electing Northern Ireland Assembly, local elections in Scotland and Northern Ireland and European Parliament elections in Northern Ireland. The Additional Member System is used to elect the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the London Assembly. And, finally, the Closed Party List is used to elect the Members of the European Parliament, with the exception of Northern Ireland which uses the Single Transferrable Vote.

There are strong arguments in the UK at the moment for electoral reform.

Session 18: Working Supper – delegates exchange views

This session was abandoned and used as an opportunity to give us a special tour of the Palace of Westminster. It was certainly a highlight for me.

Thursday 20th June Session 19: Broadcasting Parliament

This was a fascinating session on how Parliament is broadcast in the UK and how it has changed over the years. There has always been some sensitivities about broadcasting Parliament. In the UK, the BBC actually has a dedicated channel to the Parliament. When it is not sitting they have a series of programs that they run all related to the Parliament. It was also interesting seeing a presentation from Hon Fiona Simpson MP the Speaker from Queensland who talked us through some of the issues they have faced with the media. During her time as Speaker she has had to ban the media as they were taking photos of documents on Member’s desks which were revealing sensitive information. It is worth noting that here in WA we have dedicated video streams which are controlled in house.

Session 20: Parliament, Non‐Government Organisations (NGO’s), and Civil Society

During this session we heard from some of the representatives from various groups and they basically highlighted the work they do to essentially lobby MP’s and groups within the community to get desired outcomes for areas of interest or concern to them. The session also talked about the concern from MP’s point of view about being seen to be a “puppet” for these groups. Some delegates commented that in their countries this was sometimes a very difficult road to negotiate.

Session 21: Women in Parliament

The number of women in Parliament continues to be a debate around the world and some jurisdictions are further advanced than others. This continues to be an issue with a range of differing ideological positions. However, I sense that there is unanimous support that there should be more representation in Parliaments around the world by women.

Session 22: The Role of the Speaker

The Role of the Speaker is a very important one. During this session we got to hear form the Speaker of the House of Commons, the very entertaining, Rt Hon John Bercow MP. He gave a very interesting account of what it is to be the Speaker in the House of Commons. He obviously said that it is not a job you can “nod off in” as you have so many people to manage within the Chamber. He said it was like being a referee. He also noted that he had to resign his membership to his political party which I thought was interesting and differs from our system here in Western Australia. This particular day we were taken to the Speaker’s Suite at the Westminster Palace and had lunch. It was a very ornate part of the building. He also explained that he lived there in the Palace. The corner of the building shown in the picture below is his “apartment”.

Session 23: Parliamentary Information Services – Resource, Research and Outreach

This session focussed on the resources available to MP’s and the general public through the Parliamentary Information Services. A lot of what they described sounded very similar to what is available to us in Western Australia. They have a website and a Parliamentary Library much like ours and they encourage the public and schools to use their resources and of course to visit.

Session 24: Commonwealth Matters

This was an interesting session dedicated to the Commonwealth itself. A lot of the discussion centred around promotion of the Commonwealth and making it relevant to young people. Some suggestions included Youth Commonwealth Parliamentary Seminars, the use of Facebook and Twitter to promote the Commonwealth and perhaps the introduction of a new public holiday that recognises and celebrates the Commonwealth.

Session 25: Constituency Visit Briefings

This was a very brief session dedicated to organising us into our groups, giving us a contact person and letting us know the transport arrangements for the following morning.

Friday 21st June Session 26: Constituency Visits

This for me was one of the most interesting parts of the seminar and really allowed me an opportunity to view things on the ground for an MP in the UK. I visited Ealing Southall to visit Mr Virendra Sharma MP. Virendra was elected in a by‐election in 2007, he was originally from India and was previously the Mayor of Ealing Council. There is a strong Indian community in the seat of Ealing Southall and as we walked around the electorate (or constituency) you could see that he had excellent name and face recognition. His office and staff arrangements were very different from what we have here in Western Australia and he performs several “surgeries” which is where he holds meetings with constituents and to do so he rents a room on the main street every so often. The picture below shows our group arriving and meeting Virendra Sharma MP.

Session 27: Report back on Constituency Visits

I was fortunate enough to report back on our group’s trip to Ealing Southall upon our return to the rest of the delegates and gave a brief account of what we had encountered on our trip to Ealing Southall. I made mention to his fantastic name and face recognition and the fact that he had engaged a number of community groups within his constituency. I made a comparison to some of the differences between the UK and WA systems, but ultimately ended my account by making mention of the fact that many of the things that are undertaken by MP’s are universal.

Session 28: Young People and the Parliament – Engaging the Next Generation

I was interested to hear what this session may cover, being a younger member of Parliament, I am keen to ensure that we do engage young people. There was again discussion around the use of new technology and Facebook and Twitter and other social media platforms. Some delegates said that each Parliament should have a marketing department who is tasked with engaging youth and young people with Parliament and the Parliamentary process. Over 2 billion of the Commonwealth’s population is 25 years or under.

Session 29: Closing Plenary

The seminar ended with a presentation of certificates to all delegates.

Concluding Remarks

This was a fantastic opportunity. There were several highlights of the seminar and these were meeting delegates from all over the Commonwealth from Africa to Canada to the Pacific Islands; it was also great to go into the House of Commons; was great to have lunch in the Speaker’s Suite and; to go on a constituency visit gave great insight into how MP’s operate in the UK.

This seminar also demonstrated to me the great struggles that some emerging nations are facing as they try and successfully implement their Westminster system of operation. I also realised that here in Western Australia, we have a very good system and a high functioning version of the Westminster system.

As a new member of Parliament, I highly recommend other new members attending this seminar if the opportunity arises and I thank the CPA for the opportunity.

Nathan Morton MLA

Member for Forrestfield