Unlike in the United Kingdom, Australian whips do not hold official office, but they are recognised for parliamentary purposes.
In practice, Australian whips play a lesser role than their counterparts in the United Kingdom, as party discipline in Australia tends to be tighter.
They also draw up lists of speakers in debates, which (though not binding) assist the occupant of the chair in deciding whom to call on.
The Government Chief Whip has the same power as ministers and parliamentary secretaries to move business motions.
This right was extended with the creation of the parallel chamber (then called the Main Committee) to facilitate movement of business between it and the floor of the House of Representatives.
[15][16] Early in its first session in 1901, each of the three parliamentary parties elected one whip in the House of Representatives.
[n 2] While references to assistant or deputy whips in the Australian Parliament sometimes appeared in early press reporting, just when the concept of a deputy whip emerged, or how formal the position initially was, is unclear.
It is unclear whether the practice continued when the parties went into opposition in 1929, but when the United Australia Party was formed from the Nationalists and some breakaway Labor MPs, a member of the latter group became deputy to James Bayley, who had been the Commonwealth Liberal whip.
Beazley offered the same arrangement for the Liberal Party and to see that the Nationals' deputy received a salary.
When the Democratic Labor Party (now the Democratic Labour Party) increased from two to four senators in July 1968, it elected a whip who served until he and the rest of the DLP senators lost their seats at the 1974 double dissolution election.
The Australian Democrats had a whip from 1981 until 2008, when all four senators left office following their loss at the 2007 election.
[44] The Government whip, however, received payment from a pool each Cabinet minister paid into.
[45] The Parliamentary Allowances Act 1952 provided salaries for the whips of each recognised party in both the Senate and House of Representatives.
The Government and Opposition chief whips in the House of Representatives earn an additional salary equal to 26% and 23%, respectively, of their base pay as MPs.