Parliament set to pare back
Parliament is bracing to partly shut down with the legislative process running with a skeleton group of MPs.
The House was set to kick off yesterday with a motion on how Parliament might continue to operate during the Covid-19 pandemic.
All parties are expected to support the motion, which would allow the business committee to reduce the number of people needed in the House to allow ‘‘proxy votes’’. This could mean few MPs would be present in the actual chamber.
A number of other parliamentary processes such as select committees and the lodging of oral questions will also be allowed electronically.
Parliament is in recess next week but is set to return the week after.
It comes as the Government announced new restrictions on mass gatherings yesterday.
This week, public tours of Parliament were cancelled until further notice and school visits were also cancelled from March 23, as officials ramped up efforts to help limit the spread of coronavirus at the precinct.
Parliament’s procedures
Yesterday, Leader of the House Chris Hipkins was to propose procedures to ‘‘facilitate the activities of the House and its committees during the current epidemic’’. These include adjusting or waiving the limit on proxy votes that may be cast by a party during a party vote, and lodging oral questions and motions electronically.
He was also to put forward that the Speaker may approve special arrangements for select committees to meet and conduct business, including by electronic means with remote participation. The business committee that decides how Parliament is run could also work remotely, making decisions via electronic means.
It was also proposed to give the assistant Speaker powers to perform all duties and exercise the authority of the Speaker during an adjournment of the House, if both the Speaker and Deputy Speaker were absent from duty.
Parliament’s pandemic plan
The move was part of its pandemic plan, which Speaker Trevor Mallard revealed earlier this month.
Once a pandemic was announced, Mallard said he would set the wheels in motion, working with the directorgeneral of health, Leader of the House and shadow leader of the House.
Mallard said Parliament was ready for a Covid-19 pandemic and had stocked up early on face masks and hand sanitiser, developing a plan for the worst-case scenario.
He said the plan would start with closing the public gallery, stopping public tours of Parliament, cancelling functions in the campus and events in the grounds. In the most extreme case and the ‘‘bottom of the list’’, the House would sit less often, with shorter days and fewer MPs.
Mallard believed the House should sit because if serious issues arose, Parliament would need the ability to legislate. ‘‘I think there is an accountability thing. Even if it is only five ministers or five Opposition, you have the questions asked and answered. I think this is something which is quite important ... the public would expect an accountability mechanism still to be in place.’’
Absent from Wellington
It would be a big call to reduce the number of MPs attending in Wellington but arrangements could be made so there would be fewer ministers and members in the House.
‘‘You can have proxy votes for up to 25 per cent of the House at any one time ... if the meetings of Parliament should be much smaller and people do not travel as much, you could actually run the Parliament, for a short term, with 10-12 members.’’
With the agreement of the business committee, an adjustment could be made to proxy voting arrangements, Mallard said. MPs were also younger than they used to be and international evidence appeared to show those who were older were more at risk and could be absent.
Select committees
Select committees could continue because technology already allowed for them to be broadcast and videolinked for evidence and submissions. The rules could also be changed to allow them to be held remotely, with MPs in different locations.
Business continuity
During the past year, Parliamentary Service had been working a lot on business continuity planning for security scenarios and natural disasters. Part of that had been identifying groups of staff core to the essential running of Parliament and identifying those who could work remotely. This could be enacted to ensure there were fewer staff around the building.
Parliament had been following instructions from the director-general of health, minister of health and the prime minister on the right thing to do now and if the number of Covid-19 cases increased, Mallard said.
The pandemic plan would continue to evolve with the situation in New Zealand and all actions taken in Parliament’s precinct would be guided by science and the Ministry of Health, he said. ‘‘We just have to make sure we are ready to make the changes here when and if they say it is appropriate.’’ The chief executive of the Parliamentary Service was currently involved in numerous daily phone calls with other chief executives and Mallard.