Book Description

Drawing on reports from committees, evidence from outside observers and academic research, this report concludes that two years after the general election and the Wright reforms, the evidence is "broadly encouraging" - although committees face some obstacles and there is room for improvement. The "old doctrine by which ministers alone are accountable to Parliament for the conduct of their department is being stretched to implausibility and there is a need for a changed approach. It recommends that the Government engage with the Liaison Committee in a review of the relationship between Government and select committees with the aim of producing joint guidelines for departments and committees, which recognise ministerial accountability, the proper role of the Civil Service and the legitimate wish of Parliament for more effective accountability. The report also makes numerous recommendations for Committees, including: that they be forward-looking in scrutiny of departmental performance, devoting less effort to raking over the coals of past events unless there are lessons to be learnt; give more attention to the financial implications of departmental policy and how departments assess the effectiveness of their spending; experiment with different approaches to evidence-taking, broaden the range of witnesses, and make more use of commissioned research; follow up recommendations to ensure that reports have impact and report to the House at least once each Session on what has been done The Committee intends to ask the Backbench Business Committee for time for a debate in the House of Commons on a motion endorsing its conclusions and recommendations