Parliament and public appointments
Parliament and public appointments

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Public Administration Select Committee

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2008-01-16

Total Pages: 48

ISBN-13: 9780215038043

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This Report welcomes and responds to the Government's proposal to involve select committees in public appointments by inviting committees to hold non-binding pre-appointment hearings with nominees for key positions. The Report clarifies the purpose of these hearings: to expose nominees to parliamentary and public scrutiny before the final ministerial decision on the appointment, to increase the likelihood that those appointed will be effective in their accountability to Parliament and the public. The Report also establishes criteria to determine which posts should be subject to these hearings, and identifies major auditors, ombudsmen, regulators and inspectors, as well as those responsible for the appointments system itself; along with appointments normally made on merit but where Ministers have chosen not to follow the usual processes. Finally, the Report responds to concerns about involving select committees in public appointments, including several raised by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, and proposes ways of managing the risks identified, largely through a framework of clear protocols to be agreed between the Government and the Liaison Committee, and also by monitoring and reviewing the effect of the hearings on public appointments over time.

The appointment of the chair of the Statistics Board
The appointment of the chair of the Statistics Board

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Treasury Committee

Publisher: Stationery Office

Published: 2007-07-23

Total Pages: 30

ISBN-13: 9780215035431

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Committee's report examines the role and functions of the new Statistics Board (to be created following enactment of the Statistics and Registration Service Bill currently before Parliament) and the Government's nomination of Sir Michael Scholar as Chairman of the new body. The Committee has limited its questioning to matters with a bearing on an assessment of the nominee's aptitude for the post, the selection and appointments process or his proposed actions following appointment, and its report recommends his appointment to the post. Given that this is the first time that the House of Commons has been given the chance to approve public appointments made by the government, the Committee's report also makes some comments arising from this experience for future committee scrutiny of public appointments.

Select Committees and public appointments
Select Committees and public appointments

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Liaison Committee

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2011-09-05

Total Pages: 80

ISBN-13: 9780215561244

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This report considers the experience of some three years of holding 'pre-appointment' hearings by select committees to examine the 'preferred candidate' for certain public appointments before that appointment is confirmed. Whilst the committee considers the experiment a success they do recommend a number of changes. They propose a three tier list: Posts in the first tier are those considered to be of sufficient constitutional significance as to require a process which is effectively a joint appointment by Government and the House of Commons. Posts in the second tier are those which the committee proposes should be subject to an enhanced an improved version of the current process, and which should be subject to an 'effective veto' by the House of Commons or its committees. For posts in the third tier, pre-appointment hearings should be at the discretion of committees.

Dramas at Westminster
Dramas at Westminster

Author: Marc Geddes

Publisher: Manchester University Press

Published: 2019-12-06

Total Pages: 273

ISBN-13: 1526136821

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Based on unprecedented access to the UK Parliament, this book challenges how we understand and think about accountability between government and Parliament. Drawing on three months of research in Westminster, and over forty-five interviews, this book focuses on the everyday practices of Members of Parliament and officials to reveal how parliamentarians perform their scrutiny roles. Some MPs become specialists while others act as lone wolves; some are there to try to defend their party while others want to learn about policy. Amongst these different styles, chairs of committees have to try to reconcile these interpretations and either act as committee-orientated catalysts or attempt to impose order as leadership-orientated chieftains. All of this pushes and pulls scrutiny in competing directions, and tells us that accountability depends on individual beliefs, everyday practices and the negotiation of dilemmas. In this way, MPs and officials create a drama or spectacle of accountability and use their performance on the parliamentary stage to hold government to account. Dramas at Westminster: Select committees and the quest for accountability offers the most up-to-date and detailed research on committee practices in the House of Commons, following a range of reforms since 2010.

Pre-appointment hearings by select committees
Pre-appointment hearings by select committees

Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Liaison Committee

Publisher: The Stationery Office

Published: 2008-03-05

Total Pages: 40

ISBN-13: 9780215514035

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Pre-appointment hearings by select Committees : First report session 2007 - 2008, report and annexes, together with formal Minutes