FACT SHEETS
PARTY WHIP
The party whip is a member of parliament who is selected by their parliamentary
party to take on the role of team manager. Each party has whips who work in the
House of Representatives or the Senate.
Role
History
The whip’s role is so diverse and busy that the major parties
have a chief whip and two deputy whips. They have several
responsibilities, including:
The term ‘whip’ comes from the sport of fox-hunting in
England. The whipper-in was the person who whipped all
the hunting hounds into a pack, pointed them in the right
direction to chase the fox and ensured that the pack did not
stray. The use of the term ‘whip’ may date back as far as the
seventeenth century in the British Parliament.
• meeting with the whips of opposing parties to plan
the parliamentary day, set the agenda and sort out
procedural details
• organising a list of party members who wish to speak on
bills (proposed laws) and other business and giving this
to the Speaker or President
• making sure that all party members attend and vote as
a team in a division
• counting and recording the votes in a division
• providing advice and support for party members
David Foote, DPS AUSPIC
• ensuring that party decisions are carried out
• negotiating ‘pairs’ from opposing parties, so that numbers
between the government and opposition are kept in
balance if members of parliament are absent.
In the chamber
Party whips counting the votes in a division
In the House of Representatives, whips sit in the back row
behind their party. In the Senate, whips sit among their party
and towards the President. In both cases, the whips are
positioned in the chamber so that they are able to see who
is present and what is happening among party members.
Whips are quite visible as they move around the chamber
speaking to colleagues, organising the business of the party
and making decisions with opposing party whips, the Clerks,
the Speaker or the President.
LINKS
PEO website
Fact Sheet: Political Parties
www.peo.gov.au/learning/fact-sheets/political-parties.html
APH website
House of Representatives Infosheet: The House, Government and Opposition
www.tinyurl.com/Infosheet19
FACT SHEETS – produced by the Parliamentary Education Office | www.peo.gov.au
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