Policy Development Committee

The Policy Development Committee is a body created by the National Council for the purposes of researching, writing, reviewing and maintaining party policies.

Getting involved
The Policy Development Committee (PDC) draws members from across the party. The Committee itself does not directly develop policies: it creates and coordinates working groups on a variety of topics. From time to time a working group may defer to the Committee for direction or other assistance, and the Committee is ultimately responsible for presenting completed policies for consideration by Party Members.

The Committee regularly announces the creation of working groups, and all members are encouraged to get involved.

Contacting the Policy Development Committee
If you would like to have your say on policy development we want to hear from you! Please send an email to: [mailto:policydev@pirateparty.org.au policydev@pirateparty.org.au]

Also if you want to contact any of the PDC working groups and you can't find an email address elsewhere then please feel free to send email to the address above and the appropriate person will reply to you.

What Is Happening Right Now
Working groups are created to develop policies. We strongly encourage you to get in touch with the chair of any group if you have an informed opinion on any of these matters or would like to help in any way. If you are unsure how to get in touch with someone then please feel free to just send an email to policydev@pirateparty.org.au describing what you need as all committee members receive the emails sent to that address.

Meetings
PDC Meetings are currently held every second Tuesday night at 8:30 pm (Sydney time) via IRC at irc.pirateirc.net in the #ppau-pdc channel. Feel free to drop into the channel at any time to chat about policy development. During meetings the channel may be moderated to keep the meeting running smoothly but everyone is welcome to observe. Consult the calendar for upcoming meetings, and if you need assistance please contact [mailto:policydev@pirateparty.org.au policydev@pirateparty.org.au].

Meeting Minutes

 * Policy Development Committee meeting minutes

Terms Of Reference
The PDC was created and is governed by the Terms of Reference set by the National Council.

Policy Development Process
The PDC follows a structured policy development process which ensures a uniform approach and allows all members to provide input.

Policy Working Groups
When the PDC decides that a certain policy needs to be written, a working group is formed by a motion at a PDC Meeting. The working group will have a chair person who is a member of the PDC and who is responsible for organising the working group and bringing the results back to the PDC. Participation in a working group is open to all members and we really need your help so please don't be shy! If you'd like to have input on a policy then by all means contact the chair of the working group. If in doubt you can always send email to policydev@pirateparty.org.au and we will make sure the right person contacts you.

Completed Policies

 * Civil liberties
 * Copyright reform
 * Cultural participation
 * Patent reform
 * Digital liberties & online privacy
 * Climate change & renewable energy
 * A halt on coal seam gas
 * Transparent, fair taxes
 * Simpler welfare & a higher basic income
 * A scientific approach to drugs
 * Replacement of the Marriage Act with a Civil Unions Act
 * A Bill of Rights to protect individuals
 * Education & skills
 * Reform of democratic institutions
 * Biodiversity & animal rights
 * Asylum seekers & refugees
 * Foreign policy & treaty making

Resources

 * Improvement Targets

The PDC has a Resources Wiki Page that contains links to useful information related to policy development.