4.2.6 The role of one Royal Commission

Royal commissions are major ______ inquiries established by the government to _______ something of public importance or concern in Australia, on any topic. Choose the correct words to fill the gaps in the sentence.

• political, research
• government, look into
• public, investigate
• public, research

‘The power to issue a royal commission is given to the Governor-General through the Royal Commissions Act 1902 (Cth).’ This means that the power to establish a royal commission is provided by:

• government
• parliament
• precedent
• statute

Which of the following is not a strength associated with the use of royal commissions to influence law reform?

• Royal commissions are able to undertake a comprehensive investigation into an area of public concern.
• Royal commissions can measure community views on areas of investigation by holding consultations and receiving public submissions.
• There is no obligation on the part of the parliament to support or introduce law reform to adopt any of the recommendations made by royal commissions.
• Royal commissions are independent of parliament, and more likely to remain objective and unbiased in making their recommendations.

‘The extent to which a royal commission can influence law reform is mixed, and depends on matters such as the subject matter and whether there is bipartisan support for the reform.’ Read the statement above. This is a:

• strength of royal commissions.
• weakness of royal commissions

Royal commissions are given special investigatory powers, including the power to:

• summon people to attend hearings, give evidence under oath, and be subject to cross-examination
• censor journalists and newspapers so that they do not publish news stories on ongoing investigations.
• force politicians to resign from their position in public office.
• have employers turn over documentation about their employees.