Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments
COMMUNICATION
from
MS CLARESSA SURTEES
Deputy Serjeant-at-Arms of the House of Representatives
of the Parliament of Australia
on
FIRST SPEECHES IN PARLIAMENT BY NEW MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT
Addis Ababa Session
April 2009
The meaning of ‘first speech’
At the Australian House of Representatives, 'first speech' means the first speech made by a Member of the House following his or her first election to the House for the first time, even though the Member may have had previous parliamentary experience in the Senate or a state or territory parliament.
A Member makes his or her first speech at a time convenient to the Member, during debate on formal business in the House of Representatives Chamber. The speech forms part of the permanent record of proceedings but it is much more than a contribution to a debate on business. It heralds a Member’s parliamentary career, and the speech might be referred to long after its initial delivery, as Members often use the occasion to articulate their philosophy and political values.
Content of first speech
There are no rules regarding content of a first speech. Most Members cover one or more of the following: their personal backgrounds, their political philosophies, what they hope to achieve as Members, the history and general description of their electorates, references to their families and friends, and thanks to those persons who helped their election to Parliament. Members are particularly thoughtful about the content of their first speeches because they may be used as a guide to what a Member believes or stands for, well into the future.
When first speech is made
In a new Parliament, following a general election, a newly elected Member would usually make his or her first speech during the debate on the Address in Reply to the Governor-General’s speech at the opening of the Parliament.[1] This debate commences on a day shortly after the opening of Parliament and continues for three or four weeks. If a first speech cannot be made during the Address in Reply debate (because of the unavailability of the Member), a first speech would be made at the earliest practical time. The first sitting week usually is the most convenient because Members’ families are often visiting Canberra for the swearing in of Members and the opening of Parliament.
Standing orders and practice apply
First speeches are notionally 20 minutes long. Under the standing orders[2] this is the maximum time allowed for each Member during the Address in Reply debate. If a first speech is delivered during another item of business before the House, as a matter of courtesy the usual time limit imposed by the standing orders is suspended to allow the Member to speak for a period not exceeding 20 minutes. Further, the Speaker has discretion to allow some leeway on the occasion of a first speech so as not to curtail a new Member.[3]
By convention, Members’ first speeches are heard without interjection or interruption. The Speaker normally reminds the House of this practice with the words:
“Order! Before I call the honourable member for [name of electorate], I remind the House that this is the honourable member’s first speech and I ask that the usual courtesies be extended to him/her.”
In return for this courtesy a Member is expected not to be unduly provocative. There have been occasions, however, when a Member's first speech has not been heard in silence.
Members elected at by-elections have sometimes made their first speeches in debate on Appropriation Bills to which the normal rule of relevance does not apply. Also, standing order 76, the relevance rule, has been suspended to allow a Member to make a first speech during debate on a bill to which the rule would otherwise have applied.
A speech made because of a Member’s parliamentary duty is not regarded as a first speech. For example, a speech in relation to a condolence motion is not regarded as a first speech, nor is the asking of a question without notice. A speech by a newly elected Member in his or her capacity as Minister or opposition spokesperson—for example, a Minister's second reading speech on a bill or the opposition speech in reply, or a speech in reply on a matter of public importance—is also not regarded as a first speech.
However, private speaking contributions should not be made prior to a first speech. For example, it is considered that a Member should not make a 90 second or three minute statement or a speech in the adjournment debate until he or she has made a first speech. It has also been customary not to make other than kindly references to the first speech of a Member, although this convention also has not always been observed.
Member’s guests
New Members traditionally invite their families and friends to sit in the public galleries to hear their first speeches. There is a (usually strictly enforced) rule that people sitting in the public galleries of the chamber must observe proceedings in silence. This rule may be relaxed at the end of a first speech, when families and friends have been known to offer applause.
Member’s record of a first speech
As the first speech of a Member is of such significance, the House facilitates a recording of a Member's first speech, taken from the official televised proceedings of the House and a personal copy is made available to the Member. Also, the official photographer takes still photographs of a Member during a first speech.
The Hansard extract of a Member’s first speech is placed on the Member’s website on the parliamentary website (under the section for biographical details).
[1] The Governor-General gives a speech to members of both Houses, declaring the causes of the calling together of the Parliament. The speech briefly reviews the affairs of the nation and gives a forecast of the Government’s proposed program of legislation for the session of Parliament. At the conclusion of the speech a copy is presented to the Speaker of the House of Representatives by the Governor-General's Official Secretary. A committee of members of the House is formed to prepare an Address in Reply, which is debated in the chamber and presented to the Governor-General by the Speaker.
[2] http://www.aph.gov.au/house/pubs/standos/index.htm
[3] The longest first speech of the 41st Parliament took 24 minutes and 47 seconds, the shortest was 15 minutes and 48 seconds. [Chamber Research Office statistics].