1Privileges, immunities and powers of Council and Assembly

The Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, and their members and committees, have and may exercise —

(a)

the privileges, immunities and powers set out in this Act; and

(b)

to the extent that they are not inconsistent with this Act, the privileges, immunities and powers by custom, statute or otherwise of the Commons House of Parliament of the United Kingdom and its members and committees as at 1 January 1989.

[Section 1 inserted: No. 41 of 2004 s. 7.]

2Printed copies of journals of House of Commons to be evidence

Subject to the provisions of this Act, any copy of the journals of the House of Commons printed, or purporting to be printed by the order or printer of the House of Commons, shall be received as prima facie evidence without proof of its being such copy, upon any inquiry touching the privileges, immunities, and powers of the said Council or Assembly, or of any Committee or member thereof respectively.

3Designation of Legislature

The Legislature of Western Australia shall be and is hereby designated ‘The Parliament of Western Australia’.

4Power to order attendance of persons

Each House of the Parliament of the said Colony, and any Committee of either House, duly authorised by the House to send for persons and papers, may order any person to attend before the House or before such Committee, as the case may be, and also to produce to such House or Committee any paper, book, record, or other document in the possession or power of such person.

5Order to attend to be notified by summons

(1)

Any such order to attend or to produce documents before either House shall be notified to the person required to attend or to produce documents by a summons under the hand of the President or Speaker as the case may be, and any such order to attend or to produce documents before any such Committee shall be notified to the person required to attend or to produce documents by a summons under the hand of the Clerk of the House authorised by the Chairman of the Committee.

(2)

In every such summons shall be stated the time and place when and where the person summoned is to attend, and the particular documents which he is required to produce.

(3)

The summons shall be served on the person mentioned therein, either by delivering to him a correct copy of such summons, or by leaving a correct copy of the same with some adult person at his usual or last known place of abode in the Colony.

(4)

There shall be paid or tendered to the person so summoned a reasonable sum for his expenses of attendance.

[Section 5 amended: No. 19 of 2010 s. 51.]

6Attendance of members

A member of either House may be ordered by the House of which he is a member to attend before either House, or before any Committee of either House, without summons.

7Objection to answer questions or produce documents to be reported to House

If any person ordered to attend or produce any paper, book, record, or other document to either House, or to any Committee of either House, shall object to answer any question that may be put to him, or to produce any such paper, book, record, or other document on the ground that the same is of a private nature and does not affect the subject of inquiry, the President, or Speaker, or Chairman of the Committee, as the case may be, shall report such refusal, with the reason thereof, to the House, who shall thereupon excuse the answering of such question, or the production of such paper, book, record, or other document, or order the answering or production thereof, as the circumstances of the case may require.

8Houses empowered to punish summarily for certain contempts

Each House of the said Parliament is hereby empowered to punish in a summary manner as for contempt by fine according to the Standing Orders of either House, and in the event of such fine not being immediately paid, by imprisonment in the custody of its own officer in such place within the Colony as the House may direct until such fine shall have been paid, or until the end of the then existing session or any portion thereof, any of the offences hereinafter enumerated whether committed by a member of the House or by any other person —

(a)

disobedience to any order of either House or of any Committee duly authorised in that behalf to attend or to produce papers, books, records, or other documents, before the House or such Committee, unless excused by the House in manner aforesaid;

(b)

refusing to be examined before, or to answer any lawful and relevant question put by the House or any such Committee, unless excused by the House in manner aforesaid;

(c)

assaulting, obstructing, or insulting any member in his coming to or going from the House, or on account of his behaviour in Parliament or endeavouring to compel any member by force, insult, or menace to declare himself in favour of or against any proposition or matter depending or expected to be brought before either House;

(d)

sending to a member any threatening letter on account of his behaviour in Parliament;

(e)

sending a challenge to fight a member;

(f)

offering a bribe to, or attempting to bribe a member;

(g)

creating or joining in any disturbance in the House, or in the vicinity of the House while the same is sitting, whereby the proceedings of such House may be interrupted.

[Section 8 amended: No. 19 of 2010 s. 51.]

9President or Speaker to issue warrant

For the purpose of punishing any of the contempts aforesaid, the President or Speaker, as the case may be, is hereby empowered upon the resolution in that behalf of the House to issue his warrant under his hand for the apprehension and imprisonment as aforesaid of any person adjudged by the House guilty of any such contempt, if such fine shall not have been paid as aforesaid.

10Persons disturbing proceedings of House may be arrested without warrant

Any person creating or joining in any disturbances in the House during its actual sitting may be apprehended without warrant on the verbal order of the President or Speaker as the case may be, and may be kept in the custody of the officer of the House until a warrant can be made out for the imprisonment of such person in the manner aforesaid.

11Form of warrant

(1)

Every such warrant shall contain a statement that the person therein mentioned has been adjudged guilty of contempt by the House, the President or Speaker whereof shall have issued the same, specifying the nature of such contempt in the words of this Act defining the same, or in equivalent words.

(2)

Every warrant shall be sufficient from which it can be reasonably collected that the person mentioned therein has been adjudged guilty of any of the contempts aforesaid, and no particular form shall be necessary to be observed in such warrant.

[Section 11 amended: No. 19 of 2010 s. 51.]

12Sheriff’s officers, constables and others to assist in execution of warrant or verbal order

(1)

The Sheriff and his officers, and all constables and other persons, are hereby required to assist in the apprehension and detention of any person in pursuance of the verbal order as aforesaid of the President or Speaker, as the case may be, and also to be aiding and assisting in the execution of any such warrant as aforesaid.

(2)

Where any such warrant directs that the person mentioned therein shall be imprisoned in any gaol, the keeper thereof is hereby required to receive such person into his custody in the said gaol, and there to imprison him according to the tenor of the warrant.

[Section 12 amended: No. 19 of 2010 s. 51.]

Parliamentary Privileges Act 1891

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