2019 (Australian Capital Territory)

ASPG Annual Conference 2019
‘Parliaments navigating disruption in 2019’

2–4 October 2019 | Australian Parliament House, Canberra

ASPG conference group photo. Main Committee Room Parliament House. 4 October 2019. 46th Parliament of Australia. File number 20190412. Photograph by David Foote AUSPIC/DPS

Conference papers

Click on the bold title of any paper to view the paper or presentation.

Day One: Tuesday 3 October

Panel one: Navigating disruption – Parliamentary deliberation and debate

• The Quality of debate in upper houses in Australia – Patrick O’Brien, Victorian Legislative Council  •  Click here to open the presentation
• Words in the 45th Parliament: examining Senate debate through the frequency of words – Jedidiah Reardon, Australian Senate  •  Click here to open the paper  •  Click here to open the presentation
• Private members’ bill case study: Abortion legislation in Western Australia – Janine Freeman MLA, Western Australian Legislative Assembly

Panel two: Navigating disruption – Influences on policy and legislation

• Influencing policy and achieving legislative outcomes by backbench and cross-bench senators in the 45th Parliament – Maureen Weeks, Australian Senate  •  Click here to open the presentation
• Disrupting the law-making agenda: How parliaments navigate the findings of independent inquires – Dr Laura Grenfell, University of Adelaide  •  Click here to open the presentation
• The role that independent bodies can play to support Parliament navigating disruption – Lind Ward, Parliamentary Budget Office  •  Click here to open the presentation
• From disruption to deliberation: Improving the quality and impact of community engagement with parliamentary law-making – Dr Sarah Moulds, University of South Australia  •  Click here to open the presentation

Panel three: The procedural and institutional disruption of social media

• Social media’s disruptive impacts (both positive and negative) for parliaments – Hans Landon-Lane, New Zealand Parliament  •  Click here to open the presentation
• Guidelines on the use of social media in parliament – Joshua Forkert, South Australian House of Assembly  •  Click here to open the paper  •  Click here to open the presentation
• From Fleet Street to official tweet: The evolution of vice-regal communications in Australia – Chris Piggott-McKellar, Office of the Queensland Governor  •  Click here to open the paper  •  Click here to open the presentation

Day Two: Friday 4 October

Panel four: Navigating disruption to parliamentary committees 

• The truth, the half truth, and nothing like the truth – Lynley Ducker & Aleshia Westgate, Australian House of Representatives •  Click here to open the paper
• Does legislative scrutiny by parliamentary committees improve human rights compatibility of legislation? – Lynda Pretty, Queensland Parliament  •  Click here to open the paper  •  Click here to open the presentation
• Disrupting consensus: Understanding the role and nature of minority reports in parliamentary committee inquiries – John Aliferis, independent researcher, and Dr Anita Mackay, La Trobe University  •  Click here to open the presentation

Panel five: Navigating disruption – Community engagement

• Using technology to engage citizens – Hon Jonathan O’Dea MP, New South Wales Legislative Assembly  •  Click here to open the paper   •  Click here to open the presentation
• Taking on digital disruption: What parliaments can learn from other sectors about using social media to harness public engagement – Alex Hickman, Lisa Penman, and Maddison Evans, Western Australian Legislative Council  •  Click here to open the paper  •  Click here to open the presentation

Panel six: Navigating disruption – Representation, inclusion, and diversity

• Commencement prayers as a measure of inclusivity and representativeness in Oceanian parliaments – Jayden Evett, ACT Legislative Assembly  •  Click here to open the paper
• Sub-panel: The four elements of a successful education program – Angela Casey, Amanda Paroz (Cwth), Jeannie Douglass (NSW), Natalie Young (SA), and Craig Muir (NT).

Conference Circulars