1. In these Rules-

2. In all questions of procedure for which provision is not made in these Rules, the Senate shall follow-

3. (1) During each session of Parliament, the Senate shall meet on the day and at the hour to which it stands adjourned:

4. When the hour for a meeting of the Senate shall have arrived, the President or in his absence, the Vice-President, shall take the Chair, and, subject to Rule 5 hereof, the Senate shall proceed to business:

5. If a quorum of the Senate is not present within thirty minutes after the time appointed for a sitting of the Senate, the sitting of the Senate shall stand adjourned to such day and hour as the President, or in his absence, the Vice-President, shall appoint. If both the President and Vice-President are absent, the sitting of the Senate shall stand adjourned until that day week at the same hour.

6. If, in accordance with Article 57(1) of the Constitution, the attention of the Senator presiding at a sitting of the Senate is drawn to the absence of a quorum, and if after an interval of fifteen minutes, the Senator presiding ascertains that a quorum of the Senate is still not present, the Senate shall be adjourned to such day and hour as the Senator presiding shall appoint. The provisions of this Rule shall apply mutatis mutandis when the Senate is sitting as a Committee of the whole senate.

7. The Chief Clerk shall enter any adjournment of the Senate or of a committee of the whole Senate in the Minute Book and shall notify each Member of the Senate in writing of the day and hour to which the Senate or the Committee stands adjourned.

8. Unless the Senate shall order otherwise, the business of each sitting of the Senate shall be transacted in the following order-

9. The Clerks shall be in attendance at the Senate Chamber half an hour before the hour to which the Senate stands adjourned.

10. It shall be the duty of the Chief Clerk to keep correct and full Minutes of the proceedings of the Senate and of all Committees.

11. At every meeting of the Senate the Minutes of the last meeting shall be read, amended, if required, and confirmed by the Senate and signed by the Senator presiding.

12. The Senator presiding shall decide all questions of order, subject, nevertheless, to the ultimate decision of the Senate should his ruling on any subject be objected to.

13. When at a meeting of the Senate a matter is sent to a Committee of the Senate (other than a Committee of the whole Senate), the Senator presiding at that meeting shall nominate and appoint the Chairman and members of that Committee, and any member so appointed shall not be excused save with the assent of the Senate.

14. Subject to the provisions of Article 60 of the Constitution, every Senator shall have the right to submit motions for discussion by the Senate, but no motion shall be put from the Chair unless it has been seconded. Any motion may be made orally unless the Senator presiding sees fit to require the same to be in writing. Every motion shall be entered by the Chief Clerk in the Minutes unless the Senate shall otherwise order. After a motion has been made and seconded no other motion shall be made (except for amendment, adjournment or the previous question) until the original motion shall have been put to the vote.

15. The Senator who first rises to speak shall be heard first, and if two or more rise together the Senator presiding shall determine who shall speak first. No Senator is to be interrupted whilst speaking and no Senator shall speak oftener than twice on any motion except in Committee of the whole Senate.

16. After the business of the day is commenced, no Senator shall leave the Chamber without the permission of the Senator presiding.

17. At the commencement of each Session and during the same if occasion shall require, a Senator (not being a Minister) shall be elected by the Senate to be Chairman of Committees of the whole Senate:

18. (1) Save as provided in paragraph (2) of this Rule, unless with the assent of a majority of Senators present and voting no Bill shall be introduced, or any of its stages moved, nor shall any Resolution be adopted, agreed to or concurred in without notice of at least one day being given:

19. No Bill shall pass the Senate until it has had three readings; and, save with the assent of a majority of Senators present and voting, no Bill shall be read more than twice in one day.

20. The Chief Clerk shall keep a book in which he shall enter all notices given under Rule 18, which book shall be laid on the Table and be accessible at all times to Senators.

21. When a Bill or Resolution is brought up from the House of Assembly, a Senator who is a Minister or who is one of the Senators appointed to the Senate under Article 39(2) of the Constitution, whether he is or is not a Minister, shall take charge thereof and it shall be the duty of such Senator, without delay, to move the several stages of the Bill or Resolution:

22. If in the opinion of a majority of Senators present and voting, the passage of a Bill or Resolution under the provisions of Rule 21 is being unnecessarily delayed, the Senator presiding may appoint any other Senator to proceed with the same.

23. If a clause or amendment irrelevant to the subject-matter of any Bill, Resolution or Question be offered to the Senate or to a Committee of the whole Senate, the Senator presiding shall decline to put the motion.

24. (1) Save as provided in paragraph (3) of this Rule, the question shall be put by the Senator presiding and the votes shall be taken by voices aye and no, and the result shall be declared by the Senator presiding stating "The ayes have it" or "The noes have it" as the case may be, but any Senator may challenge the opinion of the Chair by claiming a division.

(3) In the case of the election of a Senator to be President of the Senate when the Senate first meets after a general election as provided by Article 44(1) of the Constitution, or whenever it is necessary to elect a President by reason of a vacancy in the office of President occurring otherwise, or in the case of the election of a Senator to preside at a sitting of the Senate in the absence of the President and the Vice-President as provided by Article 56(1) of the Constitution, the Chief Clerk from his place in the Chamber shall call upon the Senators present to elect a Senator to be President or to elect a Senator to preside at the sitting, as the case may be, and shall put the question. The provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this Rule shall apply, the Chief Clerk exercising the functions of the Senator presiding and the Second Clerk exercising the functions of the Chief Clerk under the said paragraphs.

(4) An election of President shall be conducted in the following manner-

(5) An election of Vice-President shall be conducted in a similar manner to the election of President, save that the President, or if the President is absent, a Senator elected under Article 56(1) of the Constitution, shall preside and put the question.

(6) An election of a Senator to preside under Article 56(1) of the Constitution shall be conducted in a similar manner to the election of President.

25. Whenever a Bill brought up to the Senate from the House of Assembly is amended in Committee, all such amendments shall be entered in extenso in the Minutes of the day.

26. At and during each and every sitting of the Senate any absent Senator summoned in writing by the authority of the Senator presiding by order of the Senate shall immediately attend, and should he neglect to do so without assigning some reason which is deemed satisfactory to the Senate, his name shall be entered in the Minutes of the day as absent without leave, and if the same Senator should during the same session absent himself again and refuse or neglect to attend when summoned as aforesaid, it shall be the duty of the President, or if the President shall be absent from The Bahamas, or be incapacitated, or if the office of President be vacant, of the Vice-President, with the authority of the Senate, to report his absence to the Governor-General.

27. All Journals, Minutes, Books of Record and Documents of the Senate shall be placed in the custody of the Chief Clerk, who shall be responsible for their safe-keeping, and the Chief Clerk shall not, without the particular leave of the Senate, deliver extracts from or copies of such Journals, Minutes, Books of Record or Documents to any person whomsoever, except Senators who may at any time peruse such Journals, Minutes, Books of Record or Documents, and have extracts from or copies thereof.

28. Whenever a disagreement shall take place between the Senate and the House of Assembly on the subject-matter of any Bill or Resolution or proposed amendment thereto, the reasons for the Senate disagreeing shall be delivered by Message to the House of Assembly and the reasons of the House of Assembly for disagreeing shall be delivered by Message to the Senate, without a conference, unless otherwise desired by the House of Assembly or especially ordered by the Senate.

29. All petitions praying for legislative action, other than petitions for grants of money, and any documents in explanation thereof, or upon which it is intended to base legislation, must be laid before the Senate and the House of Assembly.

30. Members of the House of Assembly shall have the right to enter and remain within the Bar of the Senate Chamber during the transaction of business, as well as any other person who shall present to the Chief Clerk a card of invitation signed by a Senator. At the opening or closing of Parliament, no one shall have the right to enter the Senate Chamber unless he presents to the Chief Clerk or Second Clerk a card of invitation signed by the President, or if the President be absent from The Bahamas or be incapacitated or if the office of President be vacant, by the Vice-President:

31. The President, or if the office of President be vacant, or the President be absent from The Bahamas, or be incapacitated. the Vice-President, may grant a general permission to the representative of any journal to attend the sittings of the Senate, provided that if any such journal publishes a report which the President, or if the office of President be vacant or the President be absent from The Bahamas, or be incapacitated, the Vice-President, considers unfair or inaccurate, the President or the Vice-President, as the case may be, may revoke such permission.

32. A motion for the adjournment of the Senate may be made at any time and shall immediately be decided by a vote of the Senators present and voting.

33. If disorder shall arise during any sitting of the Senate or a Committee of the whole Senate, the sitting may be adjourned by the Senator presiding without question put.

34. Strangers present in the Senate Chamber must withdraw when called upon to do so by the Senator presiding.

35. A Select Committee may continue its investigations and duties although Parliament may not be in session and shall not be dissolved until presentation to the Senate of its report or by the order of the Senate.

1. That the regular days of meetings of the House shall be Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays as the business of the House may require; except in case of emergency, the House shall not meet on a Friday or a Saturday unless ordered by resolution of the House.

2. (1) That ten Members including the Speaker or other Member presiding be deemed a House to act as if all Members were present and to proceed to business.

3. That if any Member shall go off these Islands while the House is sitting, and shall be absent therefrom more than sixty days without the consent of the House, his seat shall be deemed vacated. If any Member shall go off these Islands while the House is not sitting, and shall be absent therefrom more than six months without, at the expiration of that time, any reasonable prospect of his return, his seat shall be deemed vacated. If any Member, having obtained leave of absence from the House, shall be absent from these Islands more than twelve months, his seat shall be deemed vacated, unless the House shall think fit to extend that leave at its next meeting.

4. That notwithstanding the provisions of Rule 9, if the business of the House is not concluded by one o'clock in the afternoon a motion for the suspension of business to a time named later that day may be moved, notwithstanding that some other measure may then be under debate. The question must be put forthwith, no debate or amendment being allowed. That if the business of the House is not concluded by seven o'clock in the evening a like motion may be moved, under the same terms, to suspend business to a time named on another day.

5. That in the case of grave disorder arising in the House the Speaker may, if he thinks it necessary to do so, adjourn the House without putting any question, or suspend the sitting for a time to be named by him.

6. That the House at its rising each day shall, except when otherwise resolved adjourn to the hour of ten-thirty o'clock on the morning of the day appointed for its next meeting.

7. That unless the House orders otherwise the business of each sitting shall be disposed of in the following order-

8. That the Member who first rises to speak be heard first; and if two or more rise at the same time to speak the Speaker or chairman shall determine which shall speak first.

9. That no Member be interrupted while speaking, and that no Member speak while sitting, also that no Member speak more than once to any point in debate, without leave of the House or Committee of the whole House. The mover of any substantive motion shall have the right of reply, but not the mover of an amendment to a substantive motion, or the previous question, or an instruction to a Committee: Provided that if the mover of a substantive motion fails to address the house on making the motion, he shall not reply until all who desire to speak have had an opportunity of doing so.

10. That the mover of a substantive motion may not speak more than thirty minutes. The seconder of a motion may not speak more than fifteen minutes. No other Member may speak more than fifteen minutes. The mover of the substantive motion shall have the right of reply and may not speak for more than fifteen minutes: Provided that any Member may speak for such longer time as he may be granted leave by the house.

11. That the Speaker, or in his absence the Deputy Speaker, or the chairman, after having called the attention of the House, or of the Committee, to the conduct of a Member who persists in irrelevance or tedious repetition either of his own arguments, or of arguments used by other Members in debate, may direct him to discontinue his speech.

12. That when a motion is made for the adjournment of a debate, or of the House during any debate, or that the chairman of a committee do report progress, or do leave the chair, the debate thereupon shall be confined to the matter of such motion; and no Member, having moved or seconded any such motion, shall be entitled to move, or second, any similar motion during the same debate.

13. That when a motion has been made and seconded it shall be entered by the Clerk, and no other motion shall be made (except for an amendment, which must be written and presented to the Speaker, or the previous question) until the first motion shall have been put to the vote. Motions not seconded are not entered by the Clerk.

14. That, unless with the unanimous consent of the House, no stage of any Bill (except introduction and first reading) shall be moved, nor any Resolution adopted, nor any Rule suspended without notice of at least one day being given, and that a list of such notices stating the day appointed for discussing any Bill or Resolution be affixed to the Notice Board of the House.

15. That a Bill of a private nature shall not be introduced in the House except upon petition from the party or parties desiring such Bill or until a report has been made by a committee appointed to enquire into the allegations of such petition. Evidence of advertisement of the petitioner's intention in at least two newspapers in The Bahamas shall be required by the Chair at the time of the introduction of the Bill.

16. That when any Bill shall be presented by a Member, in pursuance of an order of the House, or shall be brought from the Senate, the question "That this Bill be now read a first time" shall be decided without amendment or debate.

17. That all amendments to a Bill offered either in the House or in a committee of the whole House shall be relevant to the subject matter of the Bill.

18. That no Bill pass the House until it has had three readings; and that no Bill be read more than twice in one day.

19. That the House will not agree to any motion for the granting of money until notice of such motion has been given for three days: and that before any Vote of Indemnity for the payment of money shall be passed by the House, the same shall have been thrice read and agreed to at three sittings of the House, notice of the second and third readings being given one day previous.

20. That when a motion has been made for the appointment of a Select Committee to consider a matter, an amendment for the House to resolve itself into a committee of the whole House will not be entertained without the unanimous consent of the House or without notice of at least one day being given.

21. That a resolution being taken on any matter under the consideration of the House, in the House, such resolution shall not be altered during the same session.

22. That when the Deputy Speaker is unavoidably absent or is in the Chair of the House, the House upon going into a committee of the whole House shall select a Member to take the Chair of such committee. The Speaker may at any time ask the Deputy Speaker or in his absence another Member to take the Chair temporarily: Provided that while the Chair is so occupied the Speaker shall not take any part in the business of the House.

23. That the Speaker shall nominate and appoint Members for committees and messages, and any Member so appointed shall not be excused unless he has the consent of the House. The seconder of a motion for the appointment of a select committee shall not be appointed as a member of the select committee if the committee consist of less than five members.

24. That at the commencement of each new session of the House the Speaker shall nominate and appoint a Select Committee to be called The Public Accounts Committee. Such Committee shall consist of five members and must make at least one report to the House during the Session. not later than sixty days after the commencement of the Session.

25. That no committee shall sit while the House is sitting without the consent of the House provided that any committee may sit while the business of the House is suspended.

26. That in all select committees a majority of the members shall be a quorum.

27. That the House will not agree to the report of any committee until such report has been made one day.

28. That unless otherwise ordered, all messages sent to the Governor-General shall be carried by a committee consisting of not less than four members attended by the Third Clerk. The members of such committee shall meet in the Committee Room and proceed thence to Government House: Provided that if the House so orders, one Member of the House, being a member of the Cabinet, may be appointed to carry a message to the Governor-General.

29. That all messages sent to the Senate shall be carried by the Chief Clerk attended by the Third Clerk.

30. That whenever a disagreement shall take place between the Senate and the House on the subject matter of any Bill or proposed amendment thereto, the reasons of the Senate shall be received, and those of the House delivered by Message, without a conference, unless otherwise desired by the Senate or specially ordered by the House.

31. That the House will not entertain any motion for a grant of money, except upon the recommendation or with the consent of the Governor-General signified by a Minister.

32. That the House will not pass any account presented to the House by any individual unless such account be duly certified by some competent authority.

33. That the House will not entertain any petition or similar application from a Public Officer for increasing the salary of or otherwise remunerating a Public Officer: Similarly, the House will not entertain any petition or similar application from a Public Officer for a special pension until such Public Officer has retired, unless such petition or application is recommended by the Governor-General signified by a Minister.

34. That the House will not grant any sum of money for the use or support of any public establishment in The Bahamas until a statement of expenditure made up to such date as the House may require, showing the balance, if any, in hand, be laid before the House.

35. That if any petition, account or other claim for money be rejected in the committee of the whole House on the Estimates, Petitions and Accounts, and such rejection be afterwards affirmed by the House on the bringing up of the report of such committee, no motion for inserting in the Appropriation Bill any grant of money for the service, claim or demand set forth in such petition, account or other claim, shall be entertained at any stage of such Bill.

36. That upon any question of a grant of money to any Member of the House or in which any Member or Members may have direct and personal interest such Member or Members shall withdraw from the House or committee when the Speaker or Chairman is about to put the question to the vote.

37. That the Speaker or the Chairman shall order Members whose conduct is grossly disorderly to withdraw immediately from the House during the remainder of the day's sitting; and should such Member fail or refuse to withdraw when so ordered the Speaker or Chairman may name such Member or Members in which event the procedure prescribed in Rule 38 shall be followed.

38. (1) That whenever a Member shall have been named by the Speaker or by the chairman, immediately after the commission of the offence of disregarding the authority of the Chair, or of persistently and wilfully obstructing the business of the House by abusing the Rules of the House, or otherwise, then if the offence has been committed by such Member in the House, the Speaker shall forthwith put the question, on a motion being made, no amendment, motion for adjournment, or debate being allowed, "That such Member be suspended from the service of the House", and, if the offence has been committed in a committee of the whole House, the chairman shall forthwith suspend the proceedings of the committee and report the circumstances to the House; and the Speaker shall on a motion being made forthwith put the same question, no amendment, motion for adjournment, or debate being allowed, as if the offence had been committed in the House itself.

39. That when anything shall come into question touching the matter of privilege of any Member, he shall be entitled to remain in the Chamber of the House until the Speaker is about putting the question on such matter of privilege from the Chair, when he shall withdraw from the Chamber of the House.

40. That the members of the Senate shall be allowed to sit within the Bar of the Chamber of the House, as well as any person who shall present a card of invitation signed by the Speaker; and other persons shall be allowed to sit without the Bar of the Chamber whenever seating accommodation is available subject to the provisions of the Rules.

41. That strangers visiting the House shall not be allowed to express in any way either approval or disapproval of any speech, debate, or other proceeding of the House, and that on occasion arising, the Speaker, or in his absence the Deputy Speaker, may, if he thinks fit, order the withdrawal of strangers from the precincts of the House.

42. That the Speaker, or in his absence the Deputy Speaker, shall revise the minutes of each meeting prior to the next meeting. The minutes shall be taken as read unless the House directs that they or some part of them be read in extenso.

43. After the question is put and before a division takes place the Prime Minister or the Leader of the Opposition or any three Members may demand that all Members within the precincts of the House be notified that a division is about to be taken and such division shall not be taken for a period of two minutes after an officer of the House reports to the Speaker or Chairman that the Members have been so notified.

44. That in questions where a division takes place the Prime Minister or the Leader of the Opposition or any three Members may demand the yeas and nays to be entered on the minutes.

45. That it shall be the duty of the Clerk to record on the Minutes of the proceedings of the House all questions that may be asked in writing of any Minister and all replies that may be given thereto.

46. That the Clerk shall deliver certified copies of all Bills passed by the House to the Cabinet Secretary. He shall not, without the particular leave of the House, deliver extracts from or copies of the journal or other papers belonging to the House to any person whatever except to Members of the House, who may at any time peruse the proceedings or papers and have copies thereof.

47. That the conductors of the several public journals of The Bahamas be allowed to publish the proceedings of the House.

48. (1) The dress of the Speaker and Officers of the House should be similar to that of the Speaker and officers of the House of Commons at ordinary sittings.

49. That in cases of doubt these Rules shall be interpreted in the light of the relevant practice of the Commons House of Parliament of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In any matter for which these Rules do not provide the said practice shall be followed, but no restrictions which the House of Commons has introduced by Standing Order shall be deemed to extend to the House or its Members until the House has provided a Rule for such restriction.