Parliamentary Services

Parliament makes all the main laws in Aotearoa New Zealand.

This page contains a collection of awesome resources from our friends at Parliamentary Services.

The resources on this page are grouped into topics, and carefully selected for young people.

Learn about:

• What Parliament does
• How laws are made
• How young people can get involved.

Follow the links below, or explore all the content from Parliamentary Services on their website:

What is Parliament?

The main role of Parliament is to make laws. Watch this short video to get a basic introduction.

Key civics knowledge:

• The main role of Parliament is to make laws
• The other name for Parliament is the House of Representatives
• Elected representatives get to sit in Parliament and make laws
• The main way the public get involved is through Select Committees.

How are laws made?

There are rules for making laws! Parliament uses a special process to make laws. The process is designed to make better law. It includes open debate and public participation.

The resources in this section explore the law-making process, including how students can get involved.

Key civics knowledge:

• The difference between a BILL and a LAW
• The process used by Parliament to make a law
• How the public can be involved
• Where to find bills, laws and updates about progress.

Resources available:

• How a bill becomes law web page; infographic; video explainer in New Zealand Sign Language