Urgent Debates Declined — Police—Investigation into Abusive Images

I have received a letter from Tracey Martin seeking to debate, under Standing Order 389, the actions of the police in relation to degrading images posted online by a group of high school boys. In order for an urgent debate to be held, there must be a particular case of recent occurrence involving ministerial responsibility. It was reported yesterday that the police had warned boys who posted images and that charges would not be laid. Although the Minister of Police is answerable to this House for police operational matters, under our system of Government the decision to prosecute or not is not a matter of ministerial responsibility.

The purpose of an urgent debate is to hold the Government accountable for an action that has occurred for which it is responsible. There must be a distinct Government responsibility for the particular case that has been sought to debate. An urgent debate is not an opportunity for a general debate of issues of concern to members. The application is, therefore, declined. [Interruption] Order! [Interruption] Order! That sort of behaviour is—[Interruption] Order!