Watchdogs as satellites of parliament

Australian legislation indicates a special relationship between Parliament and independent watchdogs such as the Auditor General and Ombudsman. These statutory provisions are reviewed and a new model conceptualizing watchdogs as satellites of Parliament is presented and assessed in the context of th...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Wilkins, Peter
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2015
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/38551
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author Wilkins, Peter
author_facet Wilkins, Peter
author_sort Wilkins, Peter
building Curtin Institutional Repository
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description Australian legislation indicates a special relationship between Parliament and independent watchdogs such as the Auditor General and Ombudsman. These statutory provisions are reviewed and a new model conceptualizing watchdogs as satellites of Parliament is presented and assessed in the context of the debate about where these watchdogs fit in our system of government. The model assists consideration of the interdependence of Parliaments and watchdogs and tensions in the relationship. It is identified that giving primacy to the relationship with Parliament mitigates some risks and creates others, and that it provides a democratic legitimacy to the watchdogs. The article concludes that there can be benefits to the community where primacy of the role of Parliament is embedded in legislation.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-385512017-09-13T14:17:43Z Watchdogs as satellites of parliament Wilkins, Peter Australian legislation indicates a special relationship between Parliament and independent watchdogs such as the Auditor General and Ombudsman. These statutory provisions are reviewed and a new model conceptualizing watchdogs as satellites of Parliament is presented and assessed in the context of the debate about where these watchdogs fit in our system of government. The model assists consideration of the interdependence of Parliaments and watchdogs and tensions in the relationship. It is identified that giving primacy to the relationship with Parliament mitigates some risks and creates others, and that it provides a democratic legitimacy to the watchdogs. The article concludes that there can be benefits to the community where primacy of the role of Parliament is embedded in legislation. 2015 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/38551 10.1111/1467-8500.12142 unknown
spellingShingle Wilkins, Peter
Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title_full Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title_fullStr Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title_full_unstemmed Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title_short Watchdogs as satellites of parliament
title_sort watchdogs as satellites of parliament
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/38551