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Title

Ch19 Parliamentary privilege / ACTS CONSTITUTING BREACHES OF PRIVILEGE AND CONTEMPTS / Acts tending indirectly to obstruct Members in the discharge of their duty / Other offences

Database

House Practice

Date

01-05-2005

Source

House of Reps

Parl No.

41

Chapter

Parliamentary privilege

Chapter No.

Chapter 19

Page

737

Section No.

 

System Id

procedural/practcer/chapter19.55.doc


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Ch19 Parliamentary privilege / ACTS CONSTITUTING BREACHES OF PRIVILEGE AND CONTEMPTS / Acts tending indirectly to obstruct Members in the discharge of their duty / Other offences



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House of Representatives                                Ch 19                                                 p 737

 

Parliamentary privilege / ACTS CONSTITUTING BREACHES OF PRIVILEGE AND CONTEMPTS / Acts tending indirectly to obstruct Members in the discha rge of their duty

 

Other offences

May states:

Other acts besides words spoken or writings published reflecting upon either House or its proceedings which, though they do not tend directly to obstruct or impede either House in the performance of its functions, yet have a tendency to produce this result indirectly by bringing such House into odium, contempt or ridicule or by lowering its authority may constitute contempts. 1

An instance of this type of contempt is disorderly conduct within the precincts of either House while such House is sitting or during committee proceedings, although, as indicated earlier in this chapter, such conduct is usually dealt with by other means. In the assessment of any complaint in this area, regard would need to be had to the provisions of section 4 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act.

May also cites in this category of contempt ‘serving or executing civil or criminal process within the precincts of either House while the House is sitting without obtaining the leave of the House’. 2 Parliament House is not considered to be an appropriate place in which to serve such documents and, for example, service, or attempted service, on a Member on a sitting day, or on a day on which a Member was to participate in a committee meeting, could be complained of as a contempt.

On 6 October 1922 a complaint was made in the House of Representatives that a summons had been served upon a Member, Mr Blakeley, in the precincts of the House while the House was sitting. 3 The Attorney-General expressed the opinion that it was not desirable to proceed further in the case but that ‘those entrusted with the service of process of the Court should take steps to have summonses served in the ordinary way, as it is not a desirable practice that service should, under any circumstances, be made within the precincts of this House while the House is sitting’.



May , 23rd edn, p. 142.



May , 23rd edn, p. 142.



VP 1922/190, 201; H.R. Deb. (6.10.22) 3337-8; H.R. Deb. (11.10.22) 3555.