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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
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Members, Accommodation Allowances

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (14:22): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier assure the house that all members of the Liberal Party who have been claiming the country members' accommodation allowance are doing so legitimately?

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: Point of order, Mr Speaker: that question pertains to matters for which members are not responsible to the house.

The SPEAKER: Mr Clerk, can we pause the clock. I'm going to allow the question. It was asked of the Premier, but what I'm going to do is—I can anticipate what may happen here—I'm going to make a ruling on section 96 in the event that it occurs. If a private member was asked a question in relation to these matters, I just want to make a ruling; so I have paused the clock.

Only rarely are questions directed to private members, and even if they have been disallowed for contravention of the strict limitations imposed by standing orders, but also practice, standing order 96, paragraph 2, states:

2. questions may be put to other Members but only if such questions relate to any Bill, motion or other public business for which those Members, in the opinion of the Speaker, are responsible to the House.

The principle underlying the practice is clear: ministers have an authority derived from the Crown, and members appointed to chair committees of this house exercise an authority derived from the parliament and are both accountable to the house for the exercise of that delegated authority. Members are not responsible, within the meaning of standing order 96, to the house for their activities as a private member.

There are multiple precedents of this finding to support this well-established practice of the house that regulates the asking of questions to private members. I am referring to the Hon. Mr Such here. While I could have quoted the rulings of a number of former Speakers, I will quote Speaker Such from the Hansard of 9 November 2005, page 3909, where he states:

I remind members to have a look at standing order 96, which precludes members from asking a question of a member unless they hold a position such as minister, chair of a committee, or something like that. Public business is not the same as public interest.

Given the question was asked of the Premier and I have made this ruling, I am going to allow the Premier an opportunity to answer the question.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: May I ask a point of clarification, sir?

The SPEAKER: You may.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Are you informing the house that your ruling is that members are not responsible to the house for declarations they have made to the Clerk in the interest of the country members' allowance?

The SPEAKER: I am referring the member for West Torrens to my earlier statement that public business is not the same as public interest.

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