Parliamentary Affairs: special issue on '40 years of departmental select committees in the House of Commons' (vol 72, issue 4, 2019)
Thu. 31 Oct 2019
To mark the 40th anniversary of the creation of departmental select committees, this special issue of Parliamentary Affairs draws together contibutions from House of Commons officials and leading academics on the past, present and future of one of the most significant reforms to the UK Parliament.
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Departmental Select Committees: The Reform of the Century? -- Philip Norton
A Means to an End and an End in Itself: Select Committee Membership, Parliamentary Roles and Parliamentary Careers, 1979–Present -- Stephen McKay, Mark Goodwin, Stephen Holden Bates
(☆) Chairing UK Select Committees: Walking Between Friends and Foes (☆) [Open access] -- Emma Crewe, Nicholas Sarra
The Territorial Select Committees, 40 Years On -- David Torrance, Adam Evans
Select Committees: Agents of Change -- Adam Mellows-Facer, Chloe Challender, Paul Evans
(☆) Select Committees and Brexit: Parliamentary Influence in a Divisive Policy Area (☆) [Open access] -- Philip Lynch, Richard Whitaker
Between Diversity, Representation and ‘Best Evidence’: Rethinking Select Committee Evidence-Gathering Practices -- Danielle Beswick, Stephen Elstub
How Public Engagement Became a Core Part of the House of Commons Select Committees -- Aileen Walker, Naomi Jurczak, Catherine Bochel, Cristina Leston-Bandeira
Conclusion: So, What Is Good Scrutiny Good For? -- Paul Evans
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Should the Liaison Committee have as its chair someone who is not simultaneously a select committee chair, and should the identity of that person be determined by the government? The answer to these questions will tell us much about how this cohort of MPs, particularly government backbenchers, view the relationship between Parliament and the executive.
Blog / 2019 Mock Elections: Higher turnout and different outcome than the real general election
Schools making up an ‘electorate’ of over 46,000 young people returned their results to the Hansard Society's 2019 Mock Elections, which were held to coincide with the December general election and continued a series extending back over 50 years. Labour emerged as the clear 'winner' of the 2019 mock poll.
Blog / The DCMS Committee, Facebook and parliamentary powers and privilege
For its 'fake news' inquiry the House of Commons DCMS Committee has reportedly acquired papers related to a US court case involving Facebook. Andrew Kennon, former Commons Clerk of Committees, says the incident shows how the House's powers to obtain evidence do work, but that it might also weaken the case for Parliament's necessary powers in the long term.
Blog / Debating 'meaningful votes'
Most analysis of the 'meaningful vote' has been from a purely Brexit perspective. But the arguments involved have broader, constitutional, significance, and concern Parliament’s role in the making of international agreements. MPs need to think about the powers they want, at what point in the process, and with what time and information at their disposal.
Blog / Fitting a transition / implementation period into the process of legislating for Brexit
The prospective post-Brexit implementation / transition period will require amendments to the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill. Some can be made by the promised Withdrawal Agreement and Implementation Bill, but some could be made before the EU (Withdrawal) Bill is passed. This blogpost by Swee Leng Harris summarises her new briefing paper.
Blog / Trade Bill highlights Parliament's weak international treaty role
The Trade Bill raises concerns about delegated powers that also apply to the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, and need to be tackled in a way that is consistent with it. The Trade Bill also highlights flaws in Parliament's role in international agreements. In trade policy, Brexit means UK parliamentarians could have less control than now, whereas they should have more.
Publications / Opening up the Usual Channels: next steps for reform of the House of Commons
In a speech to the Hansard Society on 11 October 2017, of which the full text and audio recording are below, the House of Commons Speaker, the Rt Hon John Bercow MP, proposed three key reforms for the House: a House Business Committee; reforms to procedures for Private Members' Bills; and a loosening of the government's exclusive control over recalling the House.
Events / Future Parliament: Hacking the Legislative Process // Capacity, Scrutiny, Engagement
From finance to healthcare, technology has transformed the way we live, work and play, with innovative solutions to some of the world’s biggest challenges. Can it also have a role in how we make our laws?
Blog / Test page 004
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Blog / Test page 04
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Guides / Financial Scrutiny: the Estimates Cycle
In order to incur expenditure the government needs to obtain approval from Parliament for its departmental spending plans. The annual Estimates cycle is the means by which the House of Commons controls the government’s plans for the spending of money raised through taxation.
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The end of the transition period is likely to expose even more fully the scope of the policy-making that the government can carry out via Statutory Instruments, as it uses its new powers to develop post-Brexit law. However, there are few signs yet of a wish to reform delegated legislation scrutiny, on the part of government or the necessary coalition of MPs.