Inquiries Bill - Amendment paper No 332
Inquiries Bill - Amendment paper No 332
Inquiries Bill - Amendment paper No 332
No 332
House of Representatives
Supplementary Order Paper
Tuesday, 20 August 2013
Inquiries Bill
Proposed amendment
Hon Trevor Mallard, in Committee, to move the following amendment:
New subclause 15(1A)
After subclause 15(1) (after line 6 on page 10), insert:
(1A) An inquiry must operate under a presumption of openness and transparency.
Explanatory note
This Supplementary Order Paper amends the Inquiries Bill to provide that an inquiry must operate under a presumption of openness and transparency. As currently drafted, the Inquiries Bill allows an inquiry to make orders to forbid publication of information, restrict public access to any part or aspect of the inquiry, or hold the inquiry, or any part of it, in private. The Bill provides for criteria that an inquiry must take into account before making any such orders. This Supplementary Order Paper makes it clear that an inquiry must operate under a presumption of openness and transparency.