As Australia prepares to hold a referendum on establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament, the President of the Australian Senate examines how the 10th anniversary the Commonwealth Charter provides an opportunity to reflect on its progress and to ask if it meets the diverse needs of the Commonwealth’s citizens

Parliamentarians from the Pacific and Australia Regions have focused on building strong and resilient Parliaments at the 52nd Presiding Officers and Clerks Conference (POCC), hosted by the National Parliament of Solomon Islands in Honiara from 2 to 6 July 2023. More than 50 Presiding Officers, Speakers and Clerks from 18 Parliaments in the Pacific and Australia Regions attended the conference including Australia Federal, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Nauru, Vanuatu, Bougainville, Tuvalu, Tonga, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and the Australian State Parliaments.

The Acting Speaker of the Queensland Parliament, Mr Joe Kelly, MP, welcomed a delegation of Parliamentarians from Vanuatu led by the 2nd Deputy Speaker,  Jack Kalmet, MP on 8 June 2023.

New Members, Budget Debate and Dictionary Launch at Parliament of Australia, as well as Parliamentary Reports from the CPA Australia Region and the Third Reading Report.

The Queensland Parliament hosted its 6th Regional Sitting of Parliament in Cairns, in the far north of the Australian State from 9 to 11 May 2023. Regional Sittings of Parliament are hosted away from Brisbane, the state capital, giving people from other parts of the State the chance to experience democracy in action. A full parliamentary sitting week was held in Cairns, alongside other events including school visits, Youth Parliaments, a free community breakfast and sports sessions.

The 35th anniversary of the opening of Australia’s Parliament House occurred on Tuesday 9 May 2023. That date is significant because it is also the date of the very first sitting of Australia’s Parliament, at the Exhibition Building in Melbourne (9 May 1901), and that of the opening of the provisional (‘Old’) Parliament House (9 May 1927).

The President of the Australian Senate writes about the importance of Parliament in the reconciliation process.

To mark Commonwealth Day 2023, the Parliament of New South Wales welcomed the Governor of New South Wales, Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC, and members of the Commonwealth Day Council to Parliament House, where Her Excellency delivered His Majesty King Charles III's official Commonwealth Day message.

At the Parliament of Western Australia, Hon. Shelley Payne, Member of the Legislative Council held a special event to mark Commonwealth Day with the Parliamentary Friends of the Commonwealth group

In this article for The Parliamentarian, I would like to share some thoughts about training for new Members of Parliament and their staff and provide examples of the new approaches that have been adopted in Australia. It is timely that I write on this topic. In May 2022, Australia’s federal election saw eight new Senators and 35 new Members of the House of Representatives elected to the 47th Parliament of Australia.

Speakers and Presiding Officers from across the Commonwealth have met in Australia for the 26th Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC) which took place from 3 to 6 January 2023. Delegates from more than 30 Commonwealth Parliaments were hosted by the Senate of Australia’s President, Hon. Sue Lines and the Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives, Hon. Milton Dick, MP.