Australian House of Representatives committees
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Parliamentary committees of the Australian House of Representatives are groups of Members of Parliament, appointed by the House of Representatives, to undertake certain specified tasks. They comprise government and non-government Members and have considerable powers to undertake work on behalf of the Parliament.[1]
Federation Chamber
The Federation Chamber, established in 1994 as the Main Committee and renamed in February 2012, functions as a secondary debating venue within the Australian House of Representatives, allowing for parallel proceedings alongside the main Chamber to enhance parliamentary efficiency. This arrangement originated from recommendations in the 1993 Procedure Committee report About Time, which proposed creating a parallel stream for debating legislation and other matters to alleviate time pressures in the House. The renaming to Federation Chamber addressed potential confusion with the physical main committee room in parliament house which is used for joint and standing committees and served to emphasise parliament's role in Australia's federal system.
Purpose and role
The primary purpose of the Federation Chamber is to provide an additional forum for debating a restricted range of business, thereby optimising the use of parliamentary time, increasing opportunities for Members to speak on bills and reports, and facilitating more intimate and interactive discussions due to its smaller scale. It handles non-contentious matters that do not require formal divisions or votes, focusing on enhancing scrutiny of government legislation, private Members' business, and committee-related activities[2]
Standing committees
Under the Standing Orders of the House, standing committees are appointed for the life of the Parliament and they are usually re-established in some form in successive Parliaments (that is, after each election).
The House has two types of standing committees:
- general purpose committees – established to inquire into and report upon any matters referred to them, including legislation. These committees specialise by subject area, between them covering most areas of policy and government administration.
- domestic or internal committees – concerned with the powers and procedures of the House or the administration of Parliament.
Select committees
Select committees are appointed as the need arises for a specific purpose, and have a limited life.
One notable example was the 1963 House of Representatives Select Committee on Grievances of the Yirrkala Aborigines, Arnhem Land Reserve, which was created to address the concerns of the Yolngu people living on Yirrkala mission, after mining leases had been granted to several areas of the Gove Peninsula in Arnhem Land without consulting the people who had lived there for thousands of years. The committee was established as a result of the Yirrkala bark petitions being presented to Parliament in August 1963.[3][4][5] This committee comprised Roger Dean (Chairman); Charles Barnes; Kim Beazley Sr.; Gordon Bryant; Don Chipp; Bert Kelly; and Jock Nelson.[6]
Joint committees
Joint committees are established by both Houses of the Australian parliament and include both Members and Senators. An example of this is the Joint Standing Committee on Northern Australia, appointed by resolution by the House of Representatives on 4 July 2019 and the Senate on 22 July 2019.[7] The Inquiry into the destruction of 46,000-year-old caves at the Juukan Gorge in the Pilbara region of Western Australia was referred to this Committee in June 2020.[8]
Pay and benefits
Members receive no additional pay for their service as ordinary members on committees. Committee Chairs and Deputy Chairs receive additional pay depending on the committee on which they serve, which is specified as a percentage of the base pay of an MP and Senator ($239,270 as of July 2025[9][10]). Additional pay for committee chairs is up to 16% of the base pay ($38,283.20), depending on the committee. Deputy Chairs receive up to an additional 8% ($19,141.60).[11]
List of House and Joint committees
| Committee | Chair | Deputy Chair | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federation Chamber[a] | Sharon Claydon | Terry Young | ||
| House General Purpose Standing Committees[12][13] | ||||
| Agriculture | Meryl Swanson | Rick Wilson | ||
| Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water | Anne Urquhart | Zali Steggall | ||
| Communications and the Arts | Brian Mitchell | Bridget Archer | ||
| Economics | Daniel Mulino | Garth Hamilton | ||
| Employment, Education and Training | Lisa Chesters | Terry Young | ||
| Health, Aged Care and Sport | Mike Freelander | Melissa McIntosh | ||
| Industry, Science and Resources | Rob Mitchell | Michelle Landry | ||
| Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport | Luke Gosling | Tony Pasin | ||
| Social Policy and Legal Affairs | Susan Templeman | Pat Conaghan | ||
| House Domestic Committees[12] | ||||
| Appropriations and Administration | Milton Dick | Tony Pasin | ||
| Petitions | Jodie Belyea | Leon Rebello | ||
| Privileges and Members' Interests | Justine Elliot | Henry Pike | ||
| Procedure | Sharon Claydon | Ben Small | ||
| Publications | Mary Doyle | Henry Pike | ||
| Selection | Milton Dick | Sharon Claydon | ||
| House Select Committees | ||||
| None currently appointed | ||||
| Joint Statutory Committees | ||||
| Broadcasting of Parliamentary Proceedings | Milton Dick MP | Senator Sue Lines | ||
| Corporations and Financial Services | Senator Deborah O'Neill | Alex Hawke MP | ||
| Intelligence and Security | Peter Khalil MP | Andrew Wallace MP | ||
| Law Enforcement | Senator Helen Polley | Llew O'Brien MP | ||
| Human Rights | Josh Burns MP | Henry Pike MP | ||
| Public Accounts and Audit | Linda Burney MP | Senator Linda Reynolds | ||
| Public Works | Graham Perrett MP | Keith Pitt MP | ||
| Joint Standing Committees | ||||
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs | Senator Jana Stewart | Melissa Price MP | ||
| Electoral Matters | Kate Thwaites MP | Senator James McGrath | ||
| Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade | Shayne Neumann MP | Senator David Fawcett | ||
| Implementation of the National Redress Scheme | Senator Catryna Bilyk | Senator Dean Smith | ||
| Migration | Maria Vamvakinou MP | Anne Webster MP | ||
| National Anti-Corruption Commission | Senator Karen Grogan | Helen Haines MP | ||
| National Capital and External Territories | Alicia Payne MP | Nola Marino MP | ||
| National Disability Insurance Scheme | Libby Coker MP | Senator Hollie Hughes | ||
| Northern Australia | Marion Scrymgour MP | Warren Entsch MP | ||
| Parliamentary Library | Anne Stanley MP (Joint Chair) | |||
| Senator Slade Brockman (Joint Chair) | ||||
| Publications | Fiona Phillips MP | Senator Fatima Payman | ||
| Trade and Investment Growth | Steve Georganas MP | Scott Buchholz MP | ||
| Treaties | Josh Wilson MP | Phillip Thompson MP | ||
List of former committees
| Committee | Chair | Deputy Chair | Established | Dissolved | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| House Domestic Committees | ||||||
| Library Committee | Various | 13 September 2016[b] | ||||
| House Committee | Various | 19 September 2019[c] | ||||
| House Select Committees | ||||||
| Televising of the House of Representatives[14] | Leo McLeay | David Jull | 22 August 1991 | |||
| Print Media[15] | Michael Lee | Warwick Smith | 22 August 1991 | 25 March 1992 | ||
| Recent Australian Bushfires[16] | Gary Nairn | Dick Adams | 26 March 2003 | 15 September 2005 | ||
| Regional Development and Decentralisation[17] | John McVeigh (1 June – 20 December 2017) | Meryl Swanson | 1 June 2017 | 28 June 2018 | ||
| Darren Chester (8 February – 5 March 2018) | ||||||
| Damien Drum (from 28 March 2018) | ||||||
| Intergenerational Welfare Dependence [18] | Russell Broadbent | Pat Conroy (30 May – 10 September 2018) | 24 May 2018 | 2 April 2019 | ||
| Ged Kearney (from 12 September 2018) | ||||||
| Regional Australia[19] | Tony Pasin | Meryl Swanson (from 29 July 2019 - 7 December 2020) | 25 July 2019 | 31 March 2022 | ||
| Joel Fitzgibbon (from 7 December 2020) | ||||||
| Social Media and Online Safety[20] | Lucy Wicks | Tim Watts | 1 December 2021 | 15 March 2022 | ||
| Mental Health and Suicide Prevention [21] | Fiona Martin | Emma McBride | 2 August 2022 | 30 November 2023 | ||
| Workforce Australia Employment Services [22] | Julian Hill | Russell Broadbent | 10 December 2020 | 24 November 2021 | ||
| Nuclear Energy | Dan Repacholi | Ted O'Brien | 10 October 2024 | 28 March 2025 | ||
| Joint Select Committees[23] | ||||||
| Intelligence Services | ||||||
| Republic Referendum | ||||||
| Parliamentary Budget Office | ||||||
| Government Procurement | ||||||
| Trade and Investment Growth | Ken O'Dowd MP | Jim Chalmers MP | 4 September 2014 | 9 May 2016 | ||
| Pat Conroy MP | ||||||
| Australia's Family Law System | Kevin Andrews MP | Senator Pauline Hanson | 18 September 2019 | 22 November 2021 | ||
| Road Safety | Llew O'Brien MP | Senator Alex Gallacher | 1 August 2019 | 30 October 2020 | ||
| Pat Conaghan MP | Matt Thistlethwaite MP | |||||
| Pat Conaghan MP | Matt Thistlethwaite MP | 25 February 2021 | 25 March 2022 | |||
| Darren Chester MP | ||||||
| Implementation of the National Redress Scheme[d] | Senator Derryn Hinch | Sharon Claydon MP | 20 June 2017 | 2 April 2019 | ||
| Senator Dean Smith | Sharon Claydon MP | 10 September 2019 | 11 April 2022 | |||
| National Anti-Corruption Commission Legislation | Senator Linda White | Helen Haines MP | 28 September 2022 | 10 November 2022 | ||
| Parliamentary Standards | 10 February 2022 | 11 April 2022[e] | ||||
| Sharon Claydon MP | Senator Marise Payne | 26 July 2022 | 22 November 2022[f] | |||
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice Referendum[g][h] | Senator Trish Crossin | Senator George Brandis | 28 November 2012 | 30 January 2013 | ||
| Ken Wyatt MP | Senator Nova Peris | 2 December 2013 | 25 June 2015 | |||
| Senator Pat Dodson & Julian Leeser MP | no deputy chair | 1 March 2018 | 29 November 2018. | |||
| Senator Nita Green | Keith Wolahan MP | 30 March 2023 | 12 May 2023 | |||
| Social Media and Australian Society | Sharon Claydon MP | Senator Sarah Hanson-Young | 15 May 2024 | 18 November 2024 | ||
| Northern Australia | Marion Scrymgour MP | Warren Entsch MP | 3 August 2022 | 28 March 2025[i] | ||
See also
Notes
- ^ "The Federation Chamber was established in 1994 with the title ‘Main Committee’. Despite the change of name in 2012 it is still technically a committee of the House." - House of Representatives Practice, 7th Edn
- ^ replaced by the Joint Standing Committee on the Parliamentary Library
- ^ replaced by the Appropriations and Administration Committee
- ^ In the 45th Parliament the Committee was named: Oversight of the implementation of redress related recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse"
- ^ Committee was re-established in the next Parliament
- ^ replaced by the Joint Standing Committee on Parliamentary Standards
- ^ in the 44th Parliament the Committee was called: Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
- ^ in the 45th Parliament the Committee was called: Constitutional Recognition Relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples 2018
- ^ Replaced by the Joint Standing Committee on Northern Australia
References
- ^ "Infosheet – Committees – Parliament of Australia".
- ^ "Infosheet – The Federation Chamber – Parliament of Australia".
- ^ "Näku Dhäruk – Yirrkala bark petitions". National Museum of Australia; c=AU; o=Commonwealth of Australia; ou=National Museum of Australia. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^ Wright, Clare (1 October 2024). Näku Dhäruk: The Bark Petitions: How the People of Yirrkala Changed the course of Australian democracy. Text Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-922330-86-4.
- ^ Wright, Clare (2023). "1963 - The Yirrkala Bark Petitions". Australian Dictionary of Biography. The Quest for Indigenous Recognition. Archived from the original on 13 April 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^ Australia. Parliament. House of Representatives. Select Committee on Grievances of Yirrkala Aborigines, Arnhem Land Reserve.; Dean, R. L. (1963), Report from the Select Committee on Grievances of Yirrkala Aborigines, Arnhem Land Reserve. Pt. 1, Report & minutes of preceedings., Parliamentary paper (Australia. Parliament) , PP no. 311 of 1963, Canberra: Commonwealth Govt. Printer, nla.obj-2796527017, retrieved 13 January 2026 – via Trove
- ^ "Joint Standing Committee on Northern Australia". Parliament of Australia. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ "Inquiry into the destruction of 46,000 year old caves at the Juukan Gorge in the Pilbara region of Western Australia". Parliament of Australia. 18 June 2020. Archived from the original on 25 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ "Remuneration Tribunal (Members of Parliament) Amendment Determination (No. 2) 2025" (PDF). Retrieved 29 January 2026.
- ^ "Remuneration Tribunal (Members of Parliament) Amendment Determination (No. 2) 2025 Reasons for Determination" (PDF). Retrieved 29 January 2026.
- ^ "Remuneration Tribunal (Members of Parliament) Determination 2024". Retrieved 30 January 2026.
- ^ a b "Chapter 16. Standing, select and joint committees" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
- ^ Tony Burke, Leader of the House (22 July 2025). "Notices". House of Representatives Official Hansard. Parliament of Australia: House of Representatives. pp. 43–59. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Report of the House Select Committee on Televising of the House of Representatives" (PDF). Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "Report of the House Select Committee on the Print Media". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on the recent Australian bushfires". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Regional Development and Decentralisation". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Intergenerational Welfare Dependence". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Regional Australia". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Social Media and Online Safety". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "House Select Committee on Workforce Australia Employment Services". Retrieved 28 January 2026.
- ^ "Former Joint Committees". Retrieved 30 January 2026.