Committee establishment, role and history
The procedure for raising and dealing with questions of privilege and details of the functions and procedures of the committee are discussed in detail in Chapter 19 - Parliamentary privilege in House of Representatives Practice, 5th ed., Department of the House of Representatives, Canberra, 2005. See also House of Representatives Infosheet No. 5 - Parliamentary Privilege.
The committee may call for witnesses and documents, but when considering a matter concerning the registration or declaration of Members' Interests it must not exercise that power or undertake of a person's private interests unless the action is approved by at least 6 members of the committee other than the Chair. The committee may report when it sees fit, and must report to the House on its operations in connection with the registration and declaration of Members' interests during the year as soon as possible after 31 December each year.
Previous committees
Prior to the dissolution of the House for the 2007 general election the predecessors to this committee were known as the Standing Committee of Privileges and Standing Committee of Members' Interests
A full list of reports tabled by the Committee and its predecessors is available online together with reports of inquiries completed since 1997.
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