In What Lies Beneath: The Work of Senators and Members in the Australian Parliament, the Parliamentary Library’s Scott Brenton “compares senators as a group of political representatives with members of the House of Representatives as another group to assess the similarities and differences between their work, their roles and responsibilities, and their conceptions of representation.” Drawing on surveys of current and former parliamentarians and interviews with prominent politicians, Brenton finds that the profession has changed as a result of technological change, increases in staff and constituent numbers, increased media scrutiny, and challenges to balance work and family.
Most fundamentally, the stature of the Senate has grown from out of the shadow of the House of Representatives, while senators have also raised their profiles and become important campaign agents. While the House still seats the most powerful politicians and retains the interest of the media with its theatrics, the Senate has carved out a strong policy and legislative focus. The Senate has also been more successful in attracting a more diverse cross-section of the Australian community into the chamber and is now challenging the lower house as the real house of representatives.
