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Government Legislation & Publications: New South Wales
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ACCESS THE COLLECTION
Temporary closure of the Macquarie Street building
The Macquarie Street building, including the Bashir Reading Room, is temporarily closed for a major refurbishment until late 2025.
During the building work, all reading room services (except study rooms and the Children’s Library), along with a temporary bookshop and cafe, are available in the Mitchell building.
To access collection material please visit the temporary Bashir Reading Room in the Mitchell building or visit the Special Collections area in the Mitchell Library Reading Room to request original material.
For more information and FAQs, visit Transforming the Macquarie Street building.
Parliamentary papers
Resources
Indexes:
- [1856–1954] Consolidated index to the Minutes of the proceedings and printed papers [catalogue record]
Search the index to find parliamentary papers as well as other papers that were tabled in both the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council in the publications below. The index extends across five volumes and covers 1856-1954.
Find papers from 1856 to 1904 in the 'Journal of the Legislative Council of New South Wales, 1856–1990' and 'Votes and Proceedings of the Legislative Assembly, 1856–2010'. For later years, see 'Joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly' and the NSW Parliament website. These publications are available in the Special Collections area (call number: Q328.9106/3) - [3rd November 1874–8th December 1893] Consolidated index to the minutes of the proceedings and printed papers, vol. 2 - Hathi Trust Digital Library [external website]
This Index is for reference purposes and should not be regarded as a complex Index.
- [1824–1855] First Legislative Council archive–Parliament of New South Wales [external website]This archive contains documents from 1824 to 1855. It includes tabled papers, Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reports of debates, and documents relating to the administration of the First Council.
- [1824–1856] New South Wales Legislative Council, The Select Committees - Parliament of New South Wales [external website]Complete listing of all select committees established by the NSW Legislative Council. The first councils advised the Governor on law, convicts, public health and welfare and other matters. Not all reports have survived. This publication gives details on locating the full report where available.
- [1824-1855] Votes and proceedings of the Legislative Council [catalogue record]Call no. Q328.9106/8. Onsite storage. Fill in a stack request slip.
*Please note: Some volumes do not contain page references as stated in the indexes. Check through pages by contents rather than page numbers if this is the case. - [1856–1990] Journal of the Legislative Council of New South Wales [catalogue record]Find parliamentary papers presented in the Legislative Council. We recommend using the Consolidated index to the Minutes of the proceedings and printed papers to help find the papers you need.
Some papers are available on microfilm and others in hard copy. For later years see 'Joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly' and the NSW Parliament website. - [1856–2010] Votes and proceedings of the Legislative Assembly [catalogue record]Find parliamentary papers presented in the Legislative Assembly. We recommend using the Consolidated index to the Minutes of the proceedings and printed papers to help find the papers you need.
Some papers are available on microfilm and others in hard copy. For later years see 'Joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly' and the NSW Parliament website. - [1904–1996/97] Joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly [catalogue record]Use the indexes in the volumes to find papers that have been tabled in parliament.
- [1919, August 19th–1952, 30th April] Votes and proceedings of the Legislative Assembly, New South Wales - Hathi Trust Digital Library [external website]Contains table of contents and indexes.
- [1991–present] Votes and Proceedings - Parliament of New South Wales [external website]Browse the Votes and proceedings by year and month to find the outcome of a vote as well as the series of events for each sitting held in the Legislative Assembly.
- [1997–2006/07] Joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly [catalogue record]Use the indexes in the volumes to find papers that have been tabled in parliament.
- [1997–present] Parliamentary papers: Legislative Assembly - Parliament of New South Wales [external website]Search for papers tabled including Parliamentary Papers in the Legislative Assembly by keyword, title, type, and date. Parliamentary papers are assigned a ‘Parliament Paper’ number. Not all papers are available online. You will need to contact parliament or the department who produced the paper to request a copy of the paper if not online.
- [1995–present] Parliamentary papers: Legislative Council - Parliament of New South Wales [external website]Search for papers tabled including parliamentary papers in the Legislative Council by keyword, title, type, and date. Parliamentary papers are assigned a ‘Parliament Paper’ number. Not all papers are available online. You will need to contact parliament or the department who produced the paper to request a copy of the paper if not online.
Maps in the NSW Parliamentary papers
- Guide to maps in the New South Wales parliamentary papers, 1836-1912 : maps in the votes and proceedings of the Legislative Assembly and journals of the Legislative Council New South Wales [catalogue record]Find on Australian Reference shelves in the Special Collections area. Call number: Q016.912944/1
- Guide to maps in the New South Wales Parliamentary papers, 1904-1980 : joint volumes of papers presented to the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly [catalogue record]Find on Australian Reference shelves in the Special Collections area. Call number: Q016.91244/2
Royal commissions
- Australian Royal Commissions and Public Inquiries Library [external website]Contains the reports of nearly 4,000 Royal Commissions and Public Inquiries for the Commonwealth and all states and territories, from the mid-19th century to the present.
- Checklist of Royal Commissions, Select Committees of Parliament and Boards of Inquiry, 1855–1960 [catalogue record]Use the indexes to find reports from Royal Commissions held in New South Wales. It is common for reports to take a number of years to complete so the report may be in several volumes. It’s also typical for a report to have a different name to the commonly known name, for example, the Royal Commission into the New South Wales Police Service is commonly known as the Wood Royal Commission.
You will also find reports from Royal Commissions held by Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland and the Commonwealth. - Checklist of Royal Commissions, Select Committees of Parliament and Boards of Inquiry, 1960–1980 [catalogue record]Use the indexes to find reports from Royal Commissions held in New South Wales. It is common for reports to take a number of years to complete so the report may be in several volumes. It’s also typical for a report to have a different name to the commonly known name, for example, the Royal Commission into the New South Wales Police Service is commonly known as the Wood Royal Commission.
You will also find reports from Royal Commissions held by Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland and the Commonwealth.
Find in our catalogue
What is a Parliamentary paper?
A Parliamentary Paper is a document that has tabled in parliament and has been ordered to be printed.
Parliamentary Papers can include reports from Royal Commissions, budget papers, annual reports from government departments and agencies as well as reports prepared by experts, delegations and committees.
Documents that are presented to Parliament but not ordered to be printed do not become Parliamentary Papers, and access to them is only available from the Parliament itself.
Two house systems began in NSW in 1856. From 1824-1855 only Legislative Council existed: First Legislative Council archive.
What is a tabled paper?
A tabled paper is a document that has been formally presented to the parliament. This is often referred to as being tabled in parliament.
What are Votes and Proceedings?
The Votes and Proceedings are the minutes of the Legislative Assembly (Lower House). You will find the introduction and passage of bills, attendance and voting, petitions presented and papers tabled.