The Parliamentary History Advisory Committee was established in 1984, with the initial objective of developing publications for the 1990 centenary of the proclamation of Western Australia as a self-governing colony and of the establishment of its bicameral legislature.
Today the committee oversees the collection and development of Western Australia’s parliamentary history program. The committee is chaired on a rotational basis by the Presiding Officers of the Parliament of Western Australia with staff representation from the three parliamentary departments. The committee engages in partnerships with various organisations to assist it with its mission.
The committee works closely with the State Library of Western Australia on the parliamentary oral history program, which records personal perspectives of former members and parliamentary staff on political history and the functioning of Parliament. Published histories can be found in the State Library collection.
Queries about the parliamentary history committee can be referred to the Executive Officer by contacting receptionservices@parliament.wa.gov.au.
Works produced by the Parliamentary History Advisory Committee include:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in the Western Australian Parliament: Experiences of representation and the associated representational dilemmas, Lola Williamson, 2022; developed for the 2022 Parliamentary Research Program
Biographical register of members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Volume one, 1870-1930, David Black and Geoffrey Bolton; assisted by Ann Mozley and Patricia Simpson, 1990, revised 2001
Biographical register of members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Volume two. 1930-1990, David Black and Geoffrey Bolton; assisted by Patricia Simpson, 1990, revised 2004, 2011 (extended to 1930-2010)
A citizen's guide to the Western Australian Parliament, Harry C. J. Phillips, 2006, 2009, 2013
Compulsory voting: the Australian experiment, Harry C. J. Phillips, 2001
Electoral law in the state of Western Australia : an overview, Harry Phillips, 2008, 2013
Election statistics: Legislative Assembly of Western Australia 1890-1996, David Black, assisted by Valerie Prescott, 1997
The House on the hill : a history of the Parliament of Western Australia, 1832-1990, David Black, 1991
House to house: the story of Western Australia's Government & Parliament Houses over 175 years, Phillip Pendal & David Black, 2004
An index to parliamentary candidates in Western Australian elections, 1890-1989, David Black, 1991, revised 2006, revised 2010
Legislative Council of Western Australia, elections and electoral law 1867-1890, David Black and Brian de Garis, 1992
Legislative Council of Western Australia: membership register, electoral law and statistics 1890-1989, David Black, 1989
Making a difference - a frontier of firsts: women in the Western Australian Parliament 1921-2012, David Black and Harry Phillips, 2012
Making a difference: women in the Western Australian Parliament 1921-1999, David Black and Harry Phillips, 2000
Ministerial portfolio listings - Western Australia: including official offices held 1832-1890, prior to responsible government, 1992
Parliament: mirror of the people? Members of the Parliament of Western Australia 1890-2007, Phillip Pendal, David Black and Harry Phillips, 2007
Parliamentary Committees in the Western Australian Parliament: an overview of their evolution, functions and features. Volume 1: 1870-2000, Phillips, Harry C. J, 2017
Parliamentary Committees in the Western Australian Parliament: an overview of their evolution, functions and features. Volume 2: 2001-2021, Phillips, Harry C. J, Corbett, Niamh 2023
Perspectives on the sporting links of the Members of the Parliament of Western Australia: 1890-2009, Harry C.J. Phillips, 2009
Proportional representation in Western Australia: its principles, history, outcomes and education, Harry C. J. Phillips, 2012
The quest for 'one vote one value' in Western Australia's political history, Harry C. J. Phillips (with the assistance of Kirsten Robinson), 2006
Representing the people: parliamentary government in Western Australia, Harry Phillips, 1998
Second reading: parliamentary government in Western Australia, Harry C.J. Phillips, 1991, 2003
Speakers and Presidents of the Western Australian Parliament, Harry C.J. Phillips, 2004
Supplement to An index to parliamentary candidates in Western Australian elections, 1990-1995, David Black (editor), 1995
The voice of Edith Cowan, Australia's first woman parliamentarian, 1921-24, Harry C. J. Phillips, 1996
Women Parliamentarians in Australia 1921-1996 : a register of women members of commonwealth, state and territory parliaments in Australia, David Black, 1996
Women parliamentarians in Australia 1921-2009, Janet Wilson and David Black, 2009