President of the Australian Senate facts for kids
Quick facts for kids President of the Senate |
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Australian Senate | |
Style | The Honourable |
Appointer | Elected by the Senate |
Inaugural holder | Sir Richard Baker |
Formation | 9 May 1901 |
Deputy | Senator Slade Brockman |
Salary | A$369,674 |
Website | aph.gov.au |
The president of the Senate is the person in charge of the Australian Senate. The Senate is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia, known as the upper house. The other house, called the House of Representatives, has a similar leader called the speaker.
The job of the president of the Senate was created in 1901 by the Constitution of Australia. The president's main jobs are to lead the meetings, or debates, in the Senate. They decide which senators get to speak and make sure everyone follows the rules of conduct. The current president is Sue Lines, who started her role on July 26, 2022.
At the beginning of a new term of Parliament, or if the job becomes empty, the senators vote to choose one of their own members to be the new president. Usually, the person chosen is from the same political party that forms the government.
The president's most important task is to keep the Senate's meetings orderly. Unlike the speaker in the other house, the president of the Senate gets to vote on laws just like any other senator. However, if there is a tie in the votes, the president does not get an extra "casting vote" to break the tie. In this case, the law or motion does not pass.
Contents
How the President is Chosen
Rules from the Constitution
Section 17 of the Constitution of Australia explains how the president is chosen. It says:
The Senate shall, before proceeding to the despatch of any other business, choose a senator to be the President of the Senate; and as often as the office of President becomes vacant the Senate shall again choose a senator to be the President. The President shall cease to hold his office if he ceases to be a senator. He may be removed from office by a vote of the Senate, or he may resign his office or his seat by writing addressed to the Governor-General.
This means the very first thing the Senate must do is elect a president. If the president stops being a senator, they also stop being the president. Senators can also vote to remove a president or the president can choose to resign.
The Election Process
The president is elected using a secret ballot, which means no one knows who each senator voted for. The Clerk of the Senate, a senior official, runs the election.
The job of president is a political one. The party that forms the government usually nominates one of its senators, and that person is almost always elected. The main opposition party then usually nominates a senator to be the deputy president. If no one else is nominated, an election isn't needed.
What the President Does
Duties in Parliament
The president's main job is to run the Senate meetings. They make sure the rules, called Standing Orders, are followed. They also protect the rights of all senators, especially those who are not in leadership positions (known as backbenchers).
The president has help from the deputy president and other acting deputies. These helpers often take over during normal debates. The Senate is usually calmer than other government chambers in Australia, so the president rarely needs to use their powers to discipline senators.
When it's time to vote, the president votes just like any other senator. They don't get a special tie-breaking vote. This is because the Senate is designed to represent the states equally. Giving the president an extra vote would give their state more power than the others.
Administrative Duties
The president is also in charge of the Department of the Senate, which is one of the four departments that help the Parliament run smoothly. The president helps manage the budget and staff for this department. They also work with the speaker of the House of Representatives to manage Parliament House and its services.
Ceremonial Duties
The president of the Senate is a very important person and has a high rank in official government events. They take part in the state opening of parliament and represent Australia when they visit other countries or when leaders from other nations visit Australia.
Salary
Like all members of parliament, the president's salary is set by an independent group called the Remuneration Tribunal. As of 2019, a senator's basic salary was A$211,242 per year. The president gets an extra 75% of this amount for their leadership role. This brings their total salary to about A$369,674 per year. They also receive other allowances to help with their work.
List of Presidents of the Senate
Since 1901, there have been 27 presidents of the Senate. Interestingly, more presidents have come from Australia's smaller states (Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania) and the Australian Capital Territory than from the larger states.
No. | Image | Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | |
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1 | ![]() |
Sir Richard Baker | Free Trade | South Australia | 9 May 1901 | 31 December 1906 | |
2 | ![]() |
(Sir) Albert Gould | Free Trade / Anti-Socialist |
New South Wales | 20 February 1907 | 30 June 1910 | |
Liberal | |||||||
3 | ![]() |
Harry Turley | Labor | Queensland | 1 July 1910 | 8 July 1913 | |
4 | ![]() |
Thomas Givens | Labor | Queensland | 9 July 1913 | 30 June 1926 | |
National Labor | |||||||
Nationalist | |||||||
5 | ![]() |
Sir John Newlands | Nationalist | South Australia | 1 July 1926 | 13 August 1929 | |
6 | ![]() |
Walter Kingsmill | Nationalist | Western Australia | 14 August 1929 | 30 August 1932 | |
United Australia | |||||||
7 | ![]() |
Patrick Lynch | United Australia | Western Australia | 31 August 1932 | 30 June 1938 | |
8 | ![]() |
John Hayes | United Australia | Tasmania | 1 July 1938 | 30 June 1941 | |
9 | ![]() |
James Cunningham | Labor | Western Australia | 1 July 1941 | 4 July 1943 | |
10 | ![]() |
Gordon Brown | Labor | Queensland | 23 September 1943 | 19 March 1951 | |
11 | ![]() |
Ted Mattner | Liberal | South Australia | 12 June 1951 | 7 September 1953 | |
12 | ![]() |
(Sir) Alister McMullin | Liberal | New South Wales | 8 September 1953 | 30 June 1971 | |
13 | ![]() |
Sir Magnus Cormack | Liberal | Victoria | 17 August 1971 | 11 April 1974 | |
14 | ![]() |
Justin O'Byrne | Labor | Tasmania | 9 July 1974 | 11 November 1975 | |
15 | ![]() |
(Sir) Condor Laucke | Liberal | South Australia | 17 February 1976 | 30 June 1981 | |
16 | ![]() |
(Sir) Harold Young | Liberal | South Australia | 18 August 1981 | 4 February 1983 | |
17 | ![]() |
Doug McClelland | Labor | New South Wales | 21 April 1983 | 23 January 1987 | |
18 | Kerry Sibraa | Labor | New South Wales | 17 February 1987 | 31 January 1994 | ||
19 | Michael Beahan | Labor | Western Australia | 1 February 1994 | 30 June 1996 | ||
20 | ![]() |
Margaret Reid | Liberal | ACT | 20 August 1996 | 18 August 2002 | |
21 | ![]() |
Paul Calvert | Liberal | Tasmania | 19 August 2002 | 14 August 2007 | |
22 | ![]() |
Alan Ferguson | Liberal | South Australia | 14 August 2007 | 25 August 2008 | |
23 | ![]() |
John Hogg | Labor | Queensland | 26 August 2008 | 30 June 2014 | |
24 | ![]() |
Stephen Parry | Liberal | Tasmania | 7 July 2014 | 2 November 2017 | |
25 | ![]() |
Scott Ryan | Liberal | Victoria | 13 November 2017 | 13 October 2021 | |
26 | ![]() |
Slade Brockman | Liberal | Western Australia | 18 October 2021 | 26 July 2022 | |
27 | Sue Lines | Labor | Western Australia | 26 July 2022 | Incumbent |
Deputy President
The Senate also elects a Deputy President and Chairman of Committees. This person helps the president and takes over when the president is absent. They also lead meetings when the whole Senate acts as one big committee to discuss the details of a bill.
This role is not in the Constitution but is part of the Senate's own rules. The title used to be just "Chairman of Committees" but was changed in 1981 to better describe what the job involves.
List of Deputy Presidents
There have been 38 deputy presidents of the Senate. Some have served more than once.
# | Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | |
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1 | Robert Best | Protectionist | Victoria | 9 May 1901 | 31 December 1903 | |
2 | William Higgs | Labor | Queensland | 16 March 1904 | 31 December 1906 | |
3 | George Pearce | Labor | Western Australia | 21 February 1907 | 13 November 1908 | |
4 | Henry Dobson | Anti-Socialist | Tasmania | 25 November 1908 | 30 June 1910 | |
Liberal | ||||||
5 | David O'Keefe | Labor | Tasmania | 1 July 1910 | 30 July 1914 | |
6 | George Henderson | Labor | Western Australia | 9 October 1914 | 30 June 1917 | |
National Labor | ||||||
Nationalist | ||||||
7 | John Shannon | Nationalist | South Australia | 12 July 1917 | 30 June 1920 | |
8 | Thomas Bakhap | Nationalist | Tasmania | 21 July 1920 | 30 June 1923 | |
9 | John Newlands | Nationalist | South Australia | 5 July 1923 | 30 June 1926 | |
10 | William Plain | Nationalist | Victoria | 1 July 1926 | 30 June 1932 | |
United Australia | ||||||
11 | Herbert Hays | United Australia | Tasmania | 1 September 1932 | 23 September 1935 | |
12 | Burford Sampson | United Australia | Tasmania | 24 September 1935 | 30 June 1938 | |
13 | James McLachlan | United Australia | South Australia | 1 July 1938 | 30 June 1941 | |
14 | Gordon Brown | Labor | Queensland | 1 July 1941 | 22 September 1943 | |
15 | Ben Courtice | Labor | Queensland | 23 September 1943 | 1 November 1946 | |
16 | Theo Nicholls | Labor | South Australia | 6 November 1946 | 19 March 1951 | |
17 | George Rankin | Country | Victoria | 12 June 1951 | 30 June 1953 | |
18 | Albert Reid | Country | New South Wales | 8 September 1953 | 22 May 1962† | |
19 | Gerald McKellar | Country | New South Wales | 7 August 1962 | 21 December 1964 | |
20 | Tom Drake-Brockman | Country | Western Australia | 16 March 1965 | 11 November 1969 | |
21 | Tom Bull | Country | New South Wales | 25 November 1969 | 30 June 1971 | |
22 | Edgar Prowse | Country | Western Australia | 17 August 1971 | 31 December 1973 | |
23 | James Webster | Country / National Country |
Victoria | 5 March 1974 | 21 December 1975 | |
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Tom Drake-Brockman | National Country | Western Australia | 17 February 1976 | 30 June 1978 | |
24 | Douglas Scott | National Country | New South Wales | 15 August 1978 | 10 December 1979 | |
25 | Ron Maunsell | National Country | Queensland | 19 February 1980 | 30 June 1981 | |
26 | Doug McClelland | Labor | New South Wales | 20 August 1981 | 4 February 1983 | |
27 | David Hamer | Liberal | Victoria | 21 April 1983 | 30 June 1990 | |
28 | Mal Colston | Labor | Queensland | 21 August 1990 | 16 August 1993 | |
29 | Noel Crichton-Browne | Liberal | Western Australia | 17 August 1993 | 9 May 1995 | |
30 | Margaret Reid | Liberal | ACT | 9 May 1995 | 20 August 1996 | |
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Mal Colston | Independent | Queensland | 20 August 1996 | 6 May 1997 | |
31 | Sue West | Labor | New South Wales | 6 May 1997 | 30 June 2002 | |
32 | John Hogg | Labor | Queensland | 19 August 2002 | 25 August 2008 | |
33 | Alan Ferguson | Liberal | South Australia | 26 August 2008 | 30 June 2011 | |
34 | Stephen Parry | Liberal | Tasmania | 4 July 2011 | 6 July 2014 | |
35 | Gavin Marshall | Labor | Victoria | 7 July 2014 | 9 May 2016 | |
36 | Sue Lines | Labor | Western Australia | 30 September 2016 | 26 July 2022 | |
37 | Andrew McLachlan | Liberal | South Australia | 26 July 2022 | 22 July 2025 | |
38 | Slade Brockman | Liberal | Western Australia | 22 July 2025 | Incumbent |
See also
In Spanish: Presidente del Senado de Australia para niños
- Clerk of the Australian Senate