Government Accountability and Virtual Parliament

Speaker:

• Professor Anne Twomey

About the Talk:

In this talk, Professor Twomey addresses how parliamentary committees can keep the Government accountable during this pandemic period, their ability to sit remotely and what is happening to review government action, especially in relation to delegated legislation.  She then considers whether there is any constitutional impediment to the Commonwealth Parliament sitting with MPs participating by electronic means, whether the same could be done in the NSW Parliament, and what is being done elsewhere to maintain public confidence in Governments and their accountability to Parliament.

The presentation builds upon an opinion piece 'A virtual Australian parliament is possible – and may be needed – during the coronavirus pandemic' published in The Conversation.

About the Speaker:

Professor Anne Twomey has practised as a solicitor and is admitted to practice in New South Wales, Victoria, the ACT, and the High Court. She has worked for the High Court of Australia as a Senior Research Officer, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Research Service as a researcher in the Law and Government Group, the Commonwealth Senate as Secretary to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Committee, and The Cabinet Office of NSW as Policy Manager of the Legal Branch. She has acted as a consultant to various government bodies.