 The existence of parliamentary committees are mentioned in section 49 of the Constitution of Australia , which makes reference to ' The powers , privileges , and immunities of the Senate and of the House of Representatives , and of the members and the committees of each House ... ' However , the Senate had few committees , engaged in limited activities , until 1970 . A number of domestic committees have operated since the establishment of the parliament , however prior to 1970 the only significant committee to be established was the Regulations and Ordinances Committee in 1932 , one of the legislative scrutiny committees ( see below ) . 
