CONFERENCE ARCHIVE

MINUTES OF THE TWENTY-NINTH APHEA CONFERENCE
held in Port Moresby, PNG, from 16 to 18 January 2002

• PRESENT
• WEDNESDAY, 16 JANUARY 2002
• THURSDAY, 17 JANUARY 2002
• FRIDAY, 18 JANUARY 2002

PRESENT

Delegates:

Observers:

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WEDNESDAY, 16 JANUARY 2002:

Conference met at 3.00 p.m.

1. OPENING AND WELCOMING ADDRESS

Mr Lakasa welcomed delegates to the conference and introduced Honourable Bernard Narakobi, Speaker of the PNG Parliament, who gave the keynote address.

On behalf of delegates Mr John Hickey, Acting Secretary, APHEA, thanked the Acting Governor-General for his welcome.

(For full report of above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings)

2. CONFERENCE FORMALITIES

a. Apologies

The Vice-President (Mr Lakasa) informed the conference of the absence of:

Ms Helen Allmich (NT)
Ms Val Barrett (C’wealth)
Ms Joan Richard (SA)
Mr Doug Rohl (Qld)
Mr Keith Ryder (ACT)
Mr Seah Ah Ee (Singapore)
Ms Judith Somogyi (NSW)
Ms Carolyn Williams (Vic)

Observer

Mr Ian Church (UK)

Appointment of Mr Chris Hall, Reporting Services Manager, Western Australia

Mr Hall (WA) informed the conference that Mr Russell Bremner, former Editor of Debates, had relinquished his position in the middle of 2001 and that Mr Hall had been appointed to the new position of Reporting Services Manager.
Mr Faulkner (NSW) congratulated Mr Hall on his appointment.

Retirement of Mr Bill Washington, Editor of Debates, Tasmania

Ms Batchler (Tas) informed the conference of the retirement of Mr Bill Washington on 11 July 2001.

Appointment of Ms Jenny Batchler, Editor of Debates, Tasmania

Ms Batchler (Tas) informed the conference of her appointment as Editor of Debates, Tasmania.
Mr Faulkner (NSW) congratulated Ms Batchler on her appointment.

Appointment of Ms Mary Harris, Deputy Clerk, New Zealand

Ms Earles informed the conference of the promotion of Ms Mary Harris, formerly Clerk Assistant (Reporting Services), to the position of Deputy Clerk.

Appointment of Mr Doug Rohl, Chief Reporter, Queensland

Mr Osmond (Qld) informed the conference of the appointment of Mr Doug Rohl as Chief Reporter.

Appointment of Ms Lucinda Osmond, Deputy Chief Reporter, Queensland

Ms Osmond (Qld) informed the conference of her appointment as Deputy Chief Reporter.
Mr Faulkner (NSW) congratulated Ms Osmond on her appointment.

Appointment of Ms Helen Allmich, Editor of Debates, Northern Territory

Ms Osmond (Qld) informed the conference of the appointment of Ms Helen Allmich as Editor of Debates, Northern Territory.

Mr Hall (WA) moved, seconded Mr Hickey (Vic):

That the Australasian and Pacific Hansard Editors Association record its deep appreciation of the contributions of Mr Bill Washington, Mr Russell Bremner and Ms Mary Harris.

Motion agreed to unanimously.

Death of Mr Nofoa Bisana, Samoa

Mr Sootaga (Samoa) informed the conference of the death of Mr Nofoa Bisana.

d. Minutes of twenty-eighth meeting held in Canberra, 2001

Mr Hall (WA) moved, seconded Ms Osmond (Qld):

That the minutes of the twenty-eighth meeting held in Canberra in 2001 be adopted as a true and accurate record.

Motion agreed to unanimously.

e. Venue and date of next meeting

Ms Earles (NZ) confirmed that the Parliament of New Zealand would host the thirtieth conference of the association in 2003. She said the conference was likely to be held in the third week of January but that the exact date and venue would be confirmed.

f. Election of office-bearers

Mr Faulkner (NSW) moved, seconded Mr Hall (WA):

That Mr Bunam Lakasa, Principal Parliamentary Reporter, Parliament of Papua New Guinea, be elected President of the Australasian and Pacific Hansard Editors Association for the ensuing 12 months and that he be the Chairman of the Conference.

Motion agreed to unanimously.

The Chairman (Mr Lakasa) moved, seconded Mr Lamshed (SA):

That Ms Wynne Price, Clerk Assistant (Reporting Services), Parliament of New Zealand, be elected Vice-President of the Australasian and Pacific Hansard Editors Association for the ensuing 12 months.

Motion agreed to unanimously.

g. Exchange of information

The Chairman (Mr Lakasa) reminded delegates that the information provided by various members should be supplied to the Secretary, APHEA, for inclusion on the association’s web site. (See also minutes for Friday, 18 January)

(Discussion ensued on use of the web site, in particular by Pacific Island members. For full report of discussion reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Conference adjourned 4.10 p.m.

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THURSDAY, 17 JANUARY 2002:

Conference met at 9.45 a.m.

3. REGIONAL PARLIAMENTS

Mr John Hickey (Vic) presented report on the regional parliaments held in Victoria in August 2001.

Mr Hickey outlined the reporting strategies adopted by the Victorian Department of Parliamentary Debates to produce the official report of the proceedings.

Discussion ensued on the planning involved, the logistics of transferring sound files and producing online logs of proceedings for later use in transcription, and other general issues.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

4. MANAGEMENT OF HANSARD RECORD

Mr Mark Faulkner (NSW) led a discussion on the issues involved in managing the Hansard record, with a particular focus on the archiving of hard and electronic versions.

Delegates also discussed the effect on the definition of ‘official record’ of the availability of various electronic versions, including video and audio tapes.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

5. COPYRIGHT, DISTRIBUTION AND ACCESSING HANSARD ON INTERNET

Mr Lamshed (SA) led a discussion on who owns the copyright to the official record and its status as a public document.

Delegates also discussed their policies on publishing and distributing Hansard in hard and electronic versions.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Conference suspended 12. 10 p.m. until 2.15 p.m.

6. RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING PROGRAMS

Mr Lamshed (SA) led a discussion on recruiting and training reporters and the various policies adopted by delegates to widen the recruitment base given the shortage of high-speed shorthand writers with the necessary editing skills.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Conference suspended 3.05 p.m. until 3.15 p.m.

7. CASUAL/SESSIONAL/TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES

Mr Lamshed (SA) led a discussion on the conditions of employment of casual/sessional/temporary staff employed by various delegates.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

8. STAFF EXCHANGE PROGRAM

Mr Hall (WA) led a discussion on the possibility of establishing a staff exchange program and any benefits that may flow from that.

Discussion ensued on various issues including guidelines, costs, accommodation and employment conditions.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Conference adjourned at 4.03 p.m.

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FRIDAY, 18 JANUARY 2002:

Conference met at 9.15 a.m.

9. VAT AND CAT COMPARISONS

Mr Faulkner (NSW) led a discussion on voice-assisted and computer-assisted transcription. Delegates reported on the various technologies used to produce the official record.

Delegates acknowledged the benefit of visiting other jurisdictions to see reporters using VAT in the working environment, and to that end invitations were extended by Mr Faulkner (NSW) and Mr Hickey (Vic).

Mr Hall (WA) asked delegates to encourage relevant staff to make better use of the VAT Users Group established and administered by the Victorian Department of Parliamentary Debates.

 

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Conference suspended 10.10 a.m. until 10.25 a.m.

10. ACCESSIBILITY TO HANSARD FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Delegates discussed the means by which accessibility to parliamentary proceedings is being and could be improved for the hearing and sight impaired.

 

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

a. Training workshops at annual conferences

Delegates discussed the proposal put by Mr Sootaga (Samoa) that training workshops be part of future annual conferences as a means of passing on expertise to Pacific Island members.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

Mr Hall (WA) moved, seconded Ms Batchler (Tas):

That at the APHEA annual conference training workshops may be held by request to facilitate the exchange of information in order to assist Hansard staff of the South Pacific nations.

Motion agreed to unanimously.

b. Affiliation fees, reserve fund and structure of association

Mr Sootaga (Samoa) led a discussion on the possibility of introducing affiliation fees.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

c. Commonwealth Hansard Editors Association conference

Ms Fogarty (UK) advised that the seventh triennial Commonwealth Hansard Editors Association conference would be held in Fiji in July.

d. Emailing of members speeches for correction

Mr Lamshed (SA) inquired about the policies adopted by other delegates with regard to dealing with members corrections electronically.

(For full report on above agenda item reference should be made to the transcript of proceedings.)

e. Retirement of Mr Bill Washington, Editor of Debates, Tasmania

Mr Hall (WA) emphasised the extent of Mr Washington’s contribution to Tasmanian Hansard and particularly to the Association.

12. CLOSING

On behalf of delegates Ms Fogarty (UK), Mr Lamshed (SA), Mr Hall (WA) and Mr Sootaga (Samoa) thanked Mr Lakasa (President) and all the reporting staff of the Parliament of Papua New Guinea for their hospitality.

The Chairman (Mr Lakasa) thanked all delegates for their participation and acknowledged the work of Ms Carolyn Williams, Secretary, APHEA, in helping to organise the conference.

Delegates then attended a lunch hosted by Mr Don Pandan, Deputy Clerk, Parliament of Paua New Guinea

John Hickey, Acting Secretary

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