In 2015, Mr. Nigel de Freitas was appointed a Government Senator and subsequently elected Vice-President of the Senate of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, making him the youngest person to ever hold the position of Vice-President, at age 36 years, in the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament.

Following the General Election in 2020, Senator de Freitas, was again appointed a Senator and elected Vice-President in the 12th Republican Parliament.

On March 16, 2022, Senator de Freitas was given a new assignment when he was appointed to the position of Minister in the Ministry of Agriculture Lands and Fisheries, where he served for ten (10) months. On January 18, 2023, at the 10th Sitting of the Senate, Senator Nigel de Freitas was elected President of the Senate, in the 12th Republican Parliament.

Senator the Honourable Nigel de Fretias, attended Bishops High School, in Tobago, the sister isle, and continued his education at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, where he attained a B.Sc. in Marine and Freshwater Biology. In 2005, Senator de Freitas continued his tertiary level studies at the University of Guelph, and later attained a M.Sc. in Aquaculture. The President of the Senate is a Marine Biologist by profession and has worked for over a decade providing operational management and technical expertise to both public and private sector companies in the fisheries sector.

Senator Hon. Sue Lines, President of the Australian Senate

Parliamentary service

• Chosen by the Parliament of Western Australia on 15.5.2013 under section 15 of the Constitution to represent that State in the Senate, vice the Hon. C Evans (resigned). Elected to the Senate for Western Australia 2016. Re-elected 2022.

Parliamentary positions

• Temporary Chair of Committees from 7.7.2014 to 9.5.2016.
• Deputy President of the Senate from 30.8.2016 to 26.7.2022.
• Chair of Committees from 30.8.2016 to 26.7.2022.
• President of the Senate from 26.7.2022.

Committee service

• Joint Select: DisabilityCare Australia served from 18.6.2013 to 5.8.2013
• Joint Standing: Treaties served from 4.12.2013 to 9.5.2016; Parliamentary Library served from 1.7.2014 to 9.5.2016; Parliamentary Library served from 30.8.2016 to 9.10.2016; Trade and Investment Growth served from 12.9.2016 to 11.10.2016; Parliamentary Library served as Joint Chair from 10.10.2016 to 11.4.2022
• Joint Statutory: Law Enforcement served from 4.7.2019 to 11.4.2022; Broadcasting of Parliamentary Proceedings served as Deputy Chair from 26.7.2022 to present
• Senate Legislative and General Purpose Standing: Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: Legislation served from 12.11.2013 to 1.7.2014; Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: References served from 12.11.2013 to 9.5.2016; Education and Employment: References served from 12.11.2013 to 13.11.2013; Education and Employment: Legislation served from 13.11.2013 to 8.5.2016; Education and Employment: References served as Chair from 14.11.2013 to 9.5.2016; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: Legislation served as Substitute member from 24.11.2014 to 10.2.2015; Environment and Communications: Legislation served as Substitute member from 23.2.2015 to 23.2.2015; Finance and Public Administration: References served as Substitute member from 5.3.2015 to 9.5.2016; Legal and Constitutional Affairs: Legislation served as Substitute member from 17.3.2015 to 5.6.2015; Environment and Communications: References served as Substitute member from 16.2.2017 to 6.3.2017
• Senate Select: Abbott Government's Commission of Audit served from 12.12.2013 to 19.6.2014; Scrutiny of Government Budget Measures served from 26.6.2014 to 9.5.2016
• Senate Standing: Senators' Interests served from 12.11.2015 to 9.5.2016; Senators' Interests served from 1.9.2016 to 25.7.2022; Appropriations, Staffing and Security served as Chair from 1.9.2016 to present; House served as Deputy Chair from 2.7.2019 to 25.7.2022; Procedure served from 26.7.2022 to present; House served as Chair from 26.7.2022 to present

Parliamentary party positions

• Australian Labor Party. Served: 15.05.2013 to present

Party positions

• Member of the Australian Labor Party Education and Training Policy Committee (NSW).
• Member of the Australian Labor Party State Executive (WA) from 1990.
• Member of the Australian Labor Party Administrative Committee (WA) from 1990 to 1998.
• Delegate to the Australian Labor Party State Conference (WA) from 1990.
• Delegate to the Australian Labor Party National Conference from 2000.
• Member of the Australian Labor Party National Executive from 2002.
• Member of the Australian Labor Party National Policy Committee from 2007 to 2009.
• Delegate to the Australian Labor Party State Conference (NSW) from 2007.
• Vice-President of the Australian Labor Party Sydney Federal Electorate Council (NSW) from 2008.

Qualifications and occupation before entering Federal Parliament

• BEd (Murdoch University).
• Teacher from 1984 to 1985.
• Community organiser from 1985 to 1987.
• Organiser for United Voice from 1987 to 2001.
• Assistant Secretary of United Voice (WA) from 2001 to 2007.
• Assistant Secretary of United Voice from 2007 to 2013.

Senator Tan Sri Dr. Wan Junaidi bin Tuanku Jaafar, has been in politics for 40 years since 1983, and a Member of Parliament for 32 years since 1990. As a Member of Parliament, he had represented Malaysia to many conferences, seminars and dialogues with Heads of Governments, Ministers, Senior Officials of various levels in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the USA, Egypt, Ethiopia, Moscow, Cuba, Northern Ireland, Geneva, India, Pakistan, alongside ASEAN member countries and others. Interestingly, he also represented Malaysia to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), New York in the years of 1991, 1993 and 2005 and delivered speeches in several of the UN Committees. Between 1990 to 2012, he made numerous diplomatic and official visits to countries like Australia, the USA, Iran, Jordan, China, Korea, Japan, Geneva, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and others to exchange ideas and to portray Malaysia as a robust and democratic Islamic Nation and International Trading Nation with a moderated Government.

A major turning point in his career was when he was elected as the Deputy Speaker of Dewan Rakyat 2008 for a full term until the Dewan Rakyat was dissolved in May 2013. He introduced many new ideas, inter alia, Parliamentary Privileges, new definitions and interpretations relating to the statutes, Acts of Parliaments, and other relevant legislations. He had made many written decisions in the Dewan Rakyat which provided guidance to some of the inexplicable applications of parliamentary privileges. Some of the decisions could be considered as ‘hallmark’ in the Dewan that could have adversely affected the service of some Ministers without his precise and well researched findings. His decisions in the Dewan Rakyat were remarkable and are recorded in the Parliament Hansard. He was then invited by the then Attorney General to write a book on “Parliamentary Privileges and Practices” and another topic, “Parliament: How its Functions?”.

Professor Hakeem Yusuf is Professor of Global Law at the University of Derby. Hakeem’s research interests are in comparative constitutionalism, colonial (rule of) law, transitional justice, and business and human rights. His work in transitional justice, colonial (rule of) law, and comparative constitutional law have won international recognition. In 2011, he served on a truth and reconciliation commission in Osun State, Nigeria. His article in the International Journal of Transitional Justice provided a pioneering account of the truth-telling process in Nigeria (the Oputa Panel). His second book, Colonial and Post-Colonial Constitutionalism in the Commonwealth: Peace, Order and Good Government (Routledge Abingdon 2014), was awarded the prestigious John T. Saywell Prize for Canadian Constitutional Legal History for 2015 and shortlisted for the Kevin Boyle Prize 2015 by the Irish association of Law Teachers (IALT). His first book Transitional Justice, Judicial Accountability and the Rule of Law (2010) was shortlisted for the 2010 Kevin Boyle Prize by IALT. His article ‘The Judiciary and Constitutionalism in Transitions: A Critique’ won the Silver Medal in the Global Jurist 2007 Awards. In 2009, he won the Highly Commended Award, Emerald Literati Network Awards for his article ‘Democratic Transition, Judicial Accountability and Judicialisation of Politics in Africa: The Nigerian Experience’ published in (2008) 50 (5) International Journal of Law and Management 236-261.