Parliamentary Inquiry Research Articles

Pathos, death talk and palliative care in the assisted dying debate in Victoria, Australia

ABSTRACTMany submissions made by individuals to an Australian Parliamentary inquiry into end-of-life care which supported assisted dying used narratives of bad deaths of family or friends, or included stories by people suffering from chronic terminal illness. The submissions used the emotional tugs (pathos) of these narratives to support their case and to highlight the contemporary weaknesses of end-of-life care. This paper analyses the submissions, showing how pathos-based arguments were used in the public debate. Pathos-based arguments are a significant – and potentially very influential – feature in the debate on assisted dying. This paper also analyses the arguments advanced by proponents of assisted dying to show the weaknesses of Victoria’s current arrangements for end-of-life care, including the significant suffering of family member or friends; lack of access to good palliative care; and that patient needs were not met, sometimes for religious or value-based reasons.

Practice and response in the prevention of sexual misconduct in the international aid sector

In early 2018 the UK media reported alleged sexual misconduct by staff employed by UK aid organisations and alleged mismanaged responses. The UK aid sector was subsequently affected by widespread reduction in funding and a parliamentary inquiry.

Metaconflict and International Human Rights Law in Dealing With Northern Ireland’s Past

In many post-conflict societies, political actors battle to ensure the dominancy of their preferred narratives regarding the causes of and responsibilities for past violence. They wage these conflicts about the conflict to instrumentalise narratives of the past to serve their contemporary political aims, but in doing so, they contribute to the endurance of societal divisions which can have destructive effects on the promotion of reconciliation and political stability. Metaconflicts can be particularly heated with respect to the design and implementation of measures to deliver victims’ rights to truth, justice and reparations, as it is through these processes that competing and complex communal narratives of the past are exposed and challenged. This article interrogates how metaconflicts shape political actors’ engagement with or resistance to international legal obligations to investigate and prosecute past violations. The approaches of Northern Ireland's Unionist political parties and Unionist-aligned organisations to the United Kingdom's obligations under the European Convention of Human Rights are used as a case study. Through theoretically informed qualitative analysis of publicly available submissions made by these groups to an official consultation and parliamentary inquiries taking place during 2018, this article identifies four strategies used by Unionists to resist approaches to dealing with the past that they view as contrary to their interests. On this basis, the article argues that these actors understand law as a means to construct and provide official recognition for communally resonant moral and social categories and norms, and that, as such, legal principles such as the equality of the law, non-discrimination and independence within the criminal justice process are viewed as secondary to political concerns. It concludes that reducing the metaconflict's destructive effects requires all parties to recognise the need for political generosity and compromise and to develop more substantive engagement with the principles of universality and equality underpinning international human rights law.

CONSTITUTIONAL FOUNDATIONS OF PARLIAMENTARY CONTROL OVER THE ACTIVITIES OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The article deals with the problems of legal regulation of various forms of parliamentary control, including government hour, parliamentary investigation, parliamentary inquiry, reports of the Government to the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. The authors analyze the effectiveness of parliamentary control in the Russian Federation, suggesting its increase through the mechanism of responsibility of officials of the Government of the Russian Federation. Proposals aimed at further improving the institution of parliamentary investigation were made. The position concerning problems of implementation of the Institute of expression of no confidence by the State Duma to the Government of the Russian Federation from the point of view of constitutional law implications of this decision is considered. In this regard, the authors believe that in case of expressing distrust to the Government of the Russian Federation further decision on the dissolution of the State Duma or the resignation of the Government of the Russian Federation should be attributed to the jurisdiction of the judicial body.

Childcare funding in spotlight

Early years experts outline changes needed to ease financial pressures as parliamentary inquiry launched

Call for bold youth work vision

Chair of a parliamentary inquiry into youth work says decisive action is needed to reinvigorate profession

Placebo scrutiny? Far-right extremism and intelligence accountability in Germany

ABSTRACTThe post-9/11 era has seen a proliferation of special, or one-off parliamentary inquiries into intelligence. This article examines the question of what quality such inquiries can achieve, exploring the scandal surrounding the case of the German far-right terrorist group National Socialist Underground (NSU). The article introduces a theoretical framework, with remit, rigor and reception as the key pillars of analysis. While special inquiries are often seen as a way of overcoming imperfections of the traditional accountability system, they can also create a placebo effect – an illusion of accountability which allows intelligence services to go uncontrolled under a blanket of democracy.

The jury remains divided on electronic cigarettes and their effects on the wider population

British Journal of Healthcare ManagementVol. 24, No. 11 CommentThe jury remains divided on electronic cigarettes and their effects on the wider populationGraham F CopeGraham F CopeSearch for more papers by this authorGraham F CopePublished Online:14 Nov 2018https://doi.org/10.12968/bjhc.2018.24.11.530AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail View article References Action on Smoking and Health. 2015. Smoking still kills. Protecting children, reducing in equalities. http://www.ash.org.uk/files/documents/ASH_962.pdf (accessed 2 November 2018) Google ScholarAction on Smoking and Health. 2018. New data shows smokers are getting the message on e-cigarettes. http://ash.org.uk/media-and-news/press-releases-media-and-news/ash-news-release-new-data-shows-smokers-are-getting-the-message-on-e-cigarettes/ (accessed 2 November 2018) Google ScholarBinns C, Lee MK, Low WY. Children and e-cigarettes: a new threat to health. Asia-Pacific J Pub Health. 2018;30(4):315–320. https://doi.org/10.1177/1010539518783808 Crossref, Google ScholarBritton J, Arnott D, McNeill A et al.. Nicotine without smoke – putting electronic cigarettes in context. BMJ. 2016;353:i1745. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i1745 Crossref, Google ScholarCope GF. The effects of smoking on wound healing. Wounds UK. 2014;10(2):10–18. Google ScholarCope GF. Smoking – what all healthcare professionals need to know. Kewick: M&K Publishing; 2016. Google ScholarCope GF. 2017. Written evidence submitted to the Parliamentary enquiry on e-cigarettes. http://data.parliament.uk/WrittenEvidence/CommitteeEvidence.svc/EvidenceDocument/Science%20and%20Technology/ECigarettes/written/74062.html (accessed 2 November 2018) Google ScholarEngland L, Aagaard K, Bloch M et al.. Developmental toxicity of nicotine: A transdisciplinary synthesis and implications for emerging tobacco products. Neurosci Biobehavl Rev. 2017;72: 176–189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.11.013 Crossref, Google ScholarFeldman C, Anderson R. Cigarette smoking and mechanisms of susceptibility to infections of the respiratory tract and other organ systems. J Infection. 2013;67(3):169–184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinf.2013.05.004 Crossref, Google ScholarFujii M, Mashimo M, Moriwaki Y et al.. Expression and function of the cholinergic system in immune cells. Frontiers Immunol 2017;6;8:1085. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2017.01085 Crossref, Google ScholarHahn HL, Kleinschrot D, Hansen D. Nicotine increases ciliary beat frequency by a direct effect on respiratory cilia. Clin Investigator 1992;70(3–4):244–251. Google ScholarJohnson JM, Naeher LP, Yu X et al.. Air monitoring at large public electronic cigarette events. Int J Hyg Envir Health 2018;221(3);541–547. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2018.02.003 Crossref, Google ScholarKamerow D. Start-up e-cigarette brand aims to “improve smokers' lives. BMJ. 2018;362:k2930. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k2930 Crossref, Google ScholarMorley K. 2018. Exclusive: Dubious sales tactics of Philip Morris salesmen revealed. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/10/15/tobacco-sales-reps-push-free-drinks-sell-wares/?playlist=structure%3Anews%2Fuk-news (accessed 30 October 2018) Google ScholarOnoda N, Nehmi A, Weiner D et al.. Nicotine affects the signaling of the death pathway, reducing the response of head and neck cancer cell lines to DNA damaging agents. Head and Neck. 2001;23(1):860–870 Crossref, Google ScholarHouse of Commons Science and Technology Committee. 2018. E-cigarettes. https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmsctech/505/505.pdf (accessed 5 November 2018) Google ScholarPublic Health England. 2017. Cost of smoking to the NHS in England: 2015. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cost-of-smoking-to-the-nhs-in-england-2015/cost-of-smoking-to-the-nhs-in-england-2015 (accessed 5 November 2018) Google ScholarPoirier G, Huang W, Tam K, DiFranza JR, King JA. 2017. Evidence of altered brain responses to nicotine in an animal model of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Nic Tob Res. 2017;19(9):1016–1023. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntx088 Crossref, Google ScholarZhang Y, Jia Y, Li P et al.. Reciprocal activation of alpha 5-nAChR and STAT3 in nicotine-induced human lung cancer cell proliferation. J Genet Genomics. 2017;44(7):355–362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgg.2017.03.003 Crossref, Google Scholar FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails 2 November 2018Volume 24Issue 11ISSN (print): 1358-0574ISSN (online): 1759-7382 Metrics History Published online 14 November 2018 Published in print 2 November 2018 Information© MA Healthcare LimitedPDF download

Applying Corporate Political Activity (CPA) analysis to Australian gambling industry submissions against regulation of television sports betting advertising.

AimsThis research aimed to assess the application to the gambling industry, of Corporate Political Activity (CPA) analysis previously developed from public health research on tobacco industry interactions with political institutions and previously applied to the alcohol industry, but not the gambling industry.BackgroundA growing body of literature has confirmed how public interest outcomes are frequently opposed by vested interests. This research focused on gambling industry submissions to a 2013 Australian Parliamentary inquiry into sports betting advertising. Gambling advertising became highly controversial following deregulation of sports betting advertising in Australia subsequent to the 2008 Australian High Court Betfair challenge. The dramatic increase in gambling advertising during sporting event broadcasts at children’s viewing times and on new interactive technology, sparked public concerns. A series of national regulatory reviews followed and the gambling industry was actively involved in opposing further regulation.MethodThe research used a corporate political activity (CPA) framework of analysis developed by UK tobacco public health researchers, which identified strategies and tactics used internationally by the tobacco industry, to broker pro-tobacco public policy outcomes. Testing the application of this CPA framework to gambling pro-industry strategies/tactics, this research focused on gambling industry submissions to the 2013 Australian Parliamentary Committee Inquiry.ResultsLike the tobacco industry, the research found the gambling industry used identified strategies and tactics, some new tactics and a new strategy of ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, promoting ‘responsible’ industry practices and pre-emptive establishment of internal ‘responsibility’ units/practices. Despite public concerns regarding sports betting advertising, the gambling industry reinforced individual choice/blame for harms and claimed it acted responsibly. It did this using strategies identified in the tobacco industry CPA framework: information strategy (and shaping the evidence base); financial incentive strategy; constituency building strategy; policy substitution strategy; legal strategy; and constituency fragmentation and destabilization strategy.ConclusionSimilar to the CPA analysis applied to tobacco and alcohol industries, the research demonstrated the usefulness of the CPA taxonomy for analyzing and documenting pre-emptive industry policy strategies and tactics, exposing gambling industry efforts to maintain industry self-regulation via voluntary codes and avoid more government regulation. Cross-sectoral application of the framework signals great potential for use of CPA by policymakers and public health advocates as a tool in the analysis of corporate industry arguments/discourses.

The British Record Commission, Its Secretary C. P. Cooper, and Two of His German Correspondents during the 1830s

AbstractThis paper presents previously unknown pieces of correspondence between C. P. Cooper (1793–1873), the secretary of the British Record Commission, and two German scholars who supported the Commission’s search for sources concerning the history of the English language and its literature. The letters illustrate how the Commission’s research effort on the Continent was organised by Cooper and his German partners. Their course of action will be contextualised within the Commission’s history up to its abrupt end in 1837 in order to show to what extent these research endeavours and the correspondences were determined by adversarial circumstances that led first to a Parliamentary inquiry into the Commission’s work and finally to its termination.

Forensic science policy and the question of governmental University research quality assessment

Forensic science policy has been the subject of a series of judicial and parliamentary enquiries in the United Kingdom in recent decades. Forensic science research has been a recurrent theme in their reports, which have included recommendations for research into the economics of forensic service provision; for the development of expertise and centres of excellence; and for research to establish the validity of the forensic sciences. These recommendations reflect similar concerns expressed internationally—particularly in the United States. In the United Kingdom, however, the Forensic Science Service recently enjoyed a near monopoly in research, and limited research funding and activity in the Universities was exacerbated by the lack of visibility of forensic science in government audits of research quality. This study used established methods in evidence-based policy and research quality evaluation to analyse the range, quantity and quality of research submitted to the two most recent audits—RAE 2008 and REF 2014. Strengths and weaknesses in the methods used are discussed, and the findings analysed in relation to wider research policy issues in forensic science. The study concludes that consolidating forensic science as a peer-science in the academy is essential in order to establish a virtuous circle that will sustain research in the discipline—and address wider policy and socio-economic questions that persistently trouble the field.

Back to the Future

The emergence of “fake news” during the Brexit referendum and Trump election campaign sent news organisations scurrying to establish teams of journalists to debunk deliberately misleading stories and verify facts. This paper examines steps to counter false stories and asks whether normative values of objectivity are about to enjoy a comeback. Typical markers of objectivity (freedom from bias, detachment and fact-based reporting) date back to the nineteenth century and, despite being ingrained in the Anglo-American news culture, have always been subject to challenge. Recently, the growth of partisan and populist media has illustrated deep distrust in traditional news outlets and is questioning whether it is time to jettison objectivity. But are we experiencing a backlash? Through interviews with senior UK-based journalists at legacy news organisations and analysis of editorial policy statements prompted by a UK parliamentary inquiry, the paper explores how fake news is rekindling debate about objectivity and its potential to make quality journalism stand out. It argues that legacy news organisations in the United Kingdom have seized the opportunity to highlight the value of normative practices that draw on familiar components of the objectivity paradigm. But few have the financial strength to bolster the rhetoric with additional editorial resources.

UK universities fall short on reporting misconduct investigations

Parliamentary inquiry recommends creation of research integrity committee. Parliamentary inquiry recommends creation of research integrity committee.

Offline: The UK's child health emergency

Offline: The UK's child health emergency

Lessons learnt from the Victorian Building Authority’s cladding audit in 2015

This paper provides a brief history of the first audit of cladding conducted in Australia, commencing in 2015, and provides details on the lessons learnt from the process. This includes the need for regulators to set clear expectations when addressing non-compliant issues, the standard of certification by practitioners and greater clarity in the construction codes. Some material from this paper has been drawn from previous submissions by the VBA to other bodies, such as the Australian Federal Senate Parliamentary Inquiry into Non- Conforming Building Products (Senate Inquiry).

Gender Equality in Child Support Policy: Fathers’ Rhetoric of “Fairness” in a Parliamentary Inquiry

Child support payments extend separated fathers’ male breadwinning role across households, likely fuelling fathers’ perceptions of ‘unfairness’. By examining fathers’ written submissions to an Australian inquiry, we examine fathers’ claims of unfairness, which were expressed in terms of gender inequality. Here, we show how fathers adopted a gender equality discourse that left intact the existing gender order. Through expectations for equal treatment, men claimed the child support system would produce equality of outcomes, namely eliminating the redistributive need for child support payments. In doing so, fathers’ qualified support for gender equality advantaged men as payers while further entrenching gender inequity.

Indigenous Australian women promoting health through sport

The authors explore the sporting experiences and community strengths of Indigenous Australian women. The intention is to inform both health promotion and contemporary sport management strategies, and policies and practices, leading to better health outcomes for this cohort. The authors employ an interpretative qualitative methodology, which involves the combination of data from a range of sources, including interviews and focus groups with 22 Indigenous women living in urban and rural areas, narratives from elite Indigenous athletes and coaches, as well as findings from a recent Australian Parliamentary inquiry into Indigenous health and wellbeing. Drawing from an agency/empowerment theoretical framework, the authors posit that, given support and opportunities, Indigenous women can become empowered to improve their mental and physical health through participation in sport. Sport managers can facilitate Indigenous women's agency in the effects of colonisation, which continues to be the basis of health issues for this cohort. Listening to Indigenous women and facilitating opportunities for them to take control of their own participation can help facilitate this process. Indigenous-women's only opportunities, partnerships with health agencies and sports organisations, culturally safe spaces and Indigenous women acting as role models are some factors that may augment Indigenous women's agency, and thus empowerment. Government, sports, community organisations and health agencies which provide these conditions in their program design can help to overcome entrenched social, historical and health inequalities that Indigenous women may experience.

UK parliamentary inquiry turned verbatim musical: A theatre review

UK parliamentary inquiry turned verbatim musical: A theatre review

Protecting freedom/protecting privilege: church responses to anti-discrimination law reform in Australia

ABSTRACTLacking a national comprehensive human rights charter or bill, Australia’s legal balancing act between competing human rights protections is captured in discrete pieces of anti-discrimination law. In 2012, the Australian Government released a draft bill consolidating these laws. Most churches roundly condemned this bill. With very few exceptions, the churches have a strong record of opposing progressive reform of Australia’s anti-discrimination protections. This paper examines the submissions made by churches to the parliamentary inquiry into the bill. The analysis demonstrates that most churches regarded the bill as a serious threat to both religious freedom and freedom of speech. In privileging religious freedom in a hierarchy of rights to be protected, the argument for religious freedom became the means by which churches sought to both protect their institutional position and entrench their particular moral code in Australian law.

Types of Parliamentary Inquiries of the Chambers of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation (to the Issue of Interpellations)

The article analyzes the existing legal regulation of parliamentary inquiries of the chambers of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation based on the goals of parliamentary review reflected in federal legislation. The author proposes a typology of parliamentary inquiries of the State Duma and the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation for the period from 2000 to 2017, reveals the basic types of parliamentary inquiries and identifies their distinctive features. According to the results of the research, it was proposed to introduce the institute of interpellation into the federal legal regulation.