Book Description

The 2010-15 Parliament saw a significant increase in Select Committee activity, particularly in the number of ad hoc committees appointed each session. It also saw the introduction of post-legislative scrutiny committees. We carried out regular reviews of Committee activity, and recommended the appointment of the Communications Committee as a sessional committee at the start of the 2013-14 Session. In our 1st Report of this Session we published our review of investigative select committee activity during the 2010-15 -arliament. We plan to publish our next review of Committee activity at the start of the 2016-17 Session and to undertake a substantial review in the 2017-18 Session. In our 2nd Report of this Session, which was agreed by the House on 10 November 2015, we recommended the establishment of an International Relations Committee at the start of the 2016-17 Session. This would be subject to the same review of all committees which will be undertaken in the 2017-18 Session. We also announced that we envisaged a total of four ad hoc Committees being appointed in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 Sessions, the same number as in the present Session. The Chairman accordingly invited proposals from members of the House for ad hoc Committees in the 2016-17 Session.