KEY RESOURCE: GOVPUBS

GovPubs : the Australian Government Publications Guide is a guide to locating selected types of Australian government publications, including Acts, Hansards, Gazettes and Parliamentary Papers.

Use the Browse by State function to find State parliamentary papers in your State or Territory library.

Ffirst Legislative Assembly, Darwin

Jensen, Michael, 1943-

Swearing in of the first Legislative Assembly, Darwin, 20 November 1974 [picture]

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The Australian Constitution defines the boundaries of law-making powers between the Commonwealth and the States/Territories.

What does the library hold?

Use GovPubs to locate government publications in the National and State libraries.

For general works, search the Catalogue. Try searching by subject; for example,

State and Territory Libraries

Your State or Territory library may hold complete sets of parliamentary documents.

Libraries ACT: The ACT Heritage Library collects ACT Government publications and the publications of other jurisdictions where the content relates to Canberra.

The State Library of New South Wales has a guide on Government Publications: New South Wales

The Northern Territory Library;  search for Northern Territory parliamentary papers at LibrariesNT.

The State Library of Queensland has guides on law resources, covering government publications.

The State Library of South Australia has a guide on Government and Parliamentary publications.

Libraries Tasmania; search for Tasmania parliamentary papers in the catalogue of Libraries Tasmania.

The State Library of Victoria has a guide on Victorian government publications

The State Library of Western Australia

Case Study

Q: How can I get an online copy of the second reading speech of the South Australian Development Act 1993.

Bills must pass through the House of Assembly and the Legislative Council before becoming an Act (either House may introduce the Bill). The Second Reading speech for the Assembly and Council are usually identical. A Second Reading speech explains the content of the Bill in non-legal terms. 

South Australian Hansards for 1993 are available online from the Parliament of South Australia website. Search by keyword or date (use the search link in the menu). The Development Bill was introduced by the Minister of Housing, Urban Development and Local Government Relations, and the Second Reading speech was on 10th March, see pages 2433-2443.

The Legislative Council received the Bill from the House of Assembly on 31st March 1993. The Second Reading speech in the Legislative Council was on 1 April 1993, see pages 1849-1859.

There is more information about the Development Act 1993 at the South Australian Attorney General’s Department .

Official reports of the parliamentary debates (Hansards) are also available in print for the following dates:

1914-1951

1952-1993

Legislative Council from 1993

House of Assembly from 1993

New South Wales State Parliament House

New South Wales State Parliament House with automobiles parked outside, Sydney, ca. 1930 [picture].

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Part of Fairfax archive of glass plate negatives between 1890 and 1948

Not sure where to start?

Ask a librarian

The National Library of Australia acknowledges Australia’s First Nations Peoples – the First Australians – as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of this land and gives respect to the Elders – past and present – and through them to all Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Cultural Notification

Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are advised that this website contains a range of material which may be considered culturally sensitive including the records of people who have passed away.

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