Secret sittings of Parliament
September 13th, 2012 at 7:00 am by David FarrarSome interesting history on the Parliament website:
New Zealanders are used to having open access to sittings of the House of Representatives. The House’s rules do allow it to exclude non-members from sittings, but this power is used very rarely. During World War II the public were excluded from 18 secret sessions.
The need for secret sessions became clear soon after the outbreak of war in September 1939, when Opposition members began to raise confidential war matters in the House. The Prime Minister, Peter Fraser, also felt restricted in his ability to keep the House fully aware of developments. Although the House’s use of secret sessions was not without controversy, it allowed members to discuss military matters, such as troop movements, without the risk of sensitive information being passed on to the enemy.
The first secret session was held on 5 June 1940 after considerable planning by Fraser in consultation with the Leader of the Opposition, Sidney Holland. The session began with a non-debatable motion by the Prime Minister calling for the removal of all strangers, at which point the galleries were cleared, members of the press and Hansard staff withdrew, and broadcasting was discontinued. The doors were locked, guards posted, and the roof patrolled regularly for eavesdroppers. It was decided that officials closely engaged with the war effort could attend the sitting, as could members of the Legislative Council. This procedure was followed for all the other secret sessions.
I can’t imagine a situation today where Parliament would meet in secret. Besides, even if they kicked everyone out, there would probably be MPs tweeting it on Twitter!
Related posts:
- Who voted against secret strike ballots?
- A secret strike!
- The secret video story
- The Secret Really Sensible Sentencing Trust
September 13th, 2012 at 7:57 am
Not the only reason we can be bloody glad WW II is 70 years ago DPF…somehow I can’t see many of todays 20 somethings, with bits of metal stuck in their faces and a comprehensive knowledge of their “rights”, getting into heavy bomber and flying over Germany night after night…
Who knows, maybe curmudgeons like me said the same thing in the early thirties…
Vote:September 13th, 2012 at 8:34 am
Your last comment seems daft to me DPF, surely all those in the room would have to handover all electronic devices?
Vote:September 13th, 2012 at 11:36 am
And yet the Christchurch City Council meets in secret for at least part of every meeting! Or at least most of them.
Vote: