The SPEAKER (3:43 PM) —I wish to make a brief statement to the House. On Tuesday, the member for Melbourne Ports asked me a series of questions relating to access by Parliamentary Library staff to officers of the Department of Defence, where library staff are making requests, on behalf of members and senators, for published or publishable information. The questions essentially dealt with two issues: the continuing capacity of library staff to seek information directly at officer level from executive departments and the time frames within which replies are provided.

In relation to the first issue, the Department of Defence has asked that questions to the department from the library be lodged with the department's ministerial and parliamentary liaison services directorate. This is intended to assist members and senators by ensuring that the answers provided are complete and comprehensive, as many defence related issues involve officers from a range of functional areas in Defence. I am advised that complex requests to Defence are already being lodged by the library with the Defence ministerial and parliamentary liaison services directorate for these very reasons. In relation to the issue of timeliness of responses, the Department of Defence indicated in recent weeks that the time frame for responses would be set in the context of Defence's priorities—a departure from past practice, where Defence had attempted to meet members' and senators' time frames as passed on by the library.

On Monday of this week, the Secretary to the Department of the Parliamentary Library wrote to the Secretary to the Department of Defence seeking assistance in ensuring that timely responses are provided by the Department of Defence. I have provided a copy of that letter to the honourable member for Melbourne Ports. The Joint Library Committee will be briefed on the matter and I will advise the member for Melbourne Ports and the House of any further developments. There are a couple of matters of personal explanation to be dealt with but, firstly, the member for Melbourne Ports may want to respond to the matter I have just raised.