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Parliament Act 2025

Parliamentary privilege - Parliamentary privilege: purpose, content, status, and recognition

15: Content of privileges, immunities, and powers of House of Representatives

You could also call this:

"What special rights and powers do MPs in the House of Representatives have?"

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You have privileges, immunities, and powers as a member of the House of Representatives. These are the same as those of the House of Commons of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1865. They must not contradict the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852. You can exercise these privileges, immunities, and powers if they were allowed by custom, practice, rules, statute, or common law. They must also not go against the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1865, which came into force on 26 September 1865. You can find more information by looking at the Parliamentary Privileges Act.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS804140.

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Part 2Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege: purpose, content, status, and recognition

15Content of privileges, immunities, and powers of House of Representatives

  1. The privileges, immunities, and powers exercisable by the House of Representatives, its committees, and its members are every privilege, immunity, or power that—

  2. was exercisable on 1 January 1865 (whether by parliamentary custom or practice and rules, statute, or common law) by the House of Commons of Great Britain and Ireland, its committees, or its members; and
    1. is not inconsistent with, or repugnant to, the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 of the Parliament of the United Kingdom as in force on 26 September 1865 (which is the date on which the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1865 came into force).

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