Government bodies

Australian Government: Department of Immigration and Citizenship

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship is the Australian government body which handles issues relating to immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. Its website gives an overview of the work of the department as well as providing the full-text of its most recent press releases and annual report. Also available is information on Australian government policy towards immigrants, including transcripts of speeches relating to migration made by the Minister for Immigration and details of aid programmes offered to new immigrants/refugees.

Prime Minister of Australia

This is the official website of the Prime Minister of Australia. It provides access to a biography and news relating to the work of the current office holder. This includes access to recent press releases, policy statements and speeches covering all aspects of Australian political, social, economic and foreign policy. Links are provided to other Australian government websites.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

The World Trade Organization (WTO) website provides information on the work of the WTO, its history, structure and aims. It includes a dispute settlement gateway and a collection of WTO legal texts, such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Research reports, records of meetings, background papers and other documents are also provided. The site is available in English, Spanish and French.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the UN agency responsible for the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights worldwide and for the administration of multilateral IP treaties. Its website contains the full text of all the treaties administered by WIPO, with status information; arbitration decisions relating to domain names; a database of national IP laws (WIPO-Lex); and a patents database.

Office of the Legal Adviser

This website outlines the work of the Office of the Legal Adviser and makes available US official publications and information about international law. The Treaty Affairs section provides the current edition of Treaties in Force; the Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS) from 1996 to 2003; information about multilateral treaties deposited with the US Government; details of treaty actions; and a list of treaties pending in the Senate. The Digest of United States Practice in International Law is available from 1989/90 onwards.

United Nations

The United Nations (UN) website provides details of its work in the fields of peace and security, development, human rights, humanitarian affairs and international law. There are sections covering the UN's main bodies: the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice and the Secretariat. Official documents, databases, maps , news and an online bookshop are provided, among other things. The website is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a political and military alliance between North America and Europe. Its aim is to maintain peace and stability through cooperative action. The NATO website contains information about the Organization’s purpose, structure and activities. The North Atlantic Treaty and its protocols are available, together with NATO ministerial communiqués (1949 onwards) and other official documents. The site also provides news, transcripts of speeches and an online bookshop.

African Union

The African Union (AU) seeks to promote unity and solidarity in Africa. Its website provides information about member states and events, together with the organisation's treaties, statements, decisions, declarations, reports and other documents. Several journals and newsletters are also available, largely in French. The site is in English, French and Arabic.

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

The Parliamentary Ombudsman investigates complaints about the action or inaction of British government departments. They also handle some issues brought by members of the public. Additionally the department performs the role of Health Service Ombudsman, investigating complaints from the public about failures in NHS care and treatment. The website offers a summary of its duties and information for the general public on when to use the ombudsman service and how to make a complaint. An additional feature is the full-text annual reports, investigation reports and consultation documents.

Subscribe to Government bodies