§ Mr. Brian Sedgemore (Hackney, South and Shoreditch)On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. It goes to the heart of the integrity of this House.
You will be aware, Mr. Speaker, that it is a convention that when Select Committees report to the House, unless there are reasons of security or confidentiality, they usually publish the evidence that has been submitted to them, and they certainly do so in cases where not to do so would render the main report incomprehensible and meaningless. You will also be aware, Mr. Speaker, that it is not the practice of Select Committees to suppress evidence given to them on a party political basis in order to protect one or more Members of the House from having their conduct made public. If that were to happen, clearly the Select Committee would be showing bias and the odour of political corruption would hang heavily in the air.
Yesterday, the Select Committee on Members' Interests reported on a submission in relation to the Prime Minister's conduct in Oman. It is impossible for the public to read and understand that report because none of the evidence which was given to it was published. The submission which the Committee dealt with was not the submission which I made, and I want to ask you, Mr. Speaker, how you can protect the good name and integrity of the House from a Select Committee which, in my submission, has acted with grave irresponsibility.
§ Sir Geoffrey Finsberg (Hampstead and Highgate)On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Is it not a fact that the way to protect the House is the way the Select Committee seems to have pursued — by not wishing to publish rubbish from the gutter?
§ Mr. SedgemoreFurther to that point of order, Mr. Speaker. It is important that the House should consider exactly where it stands in relation to this matter, particularly in view of the remarks made by the hon. Member for Hampstead and Highgate (Sir G. Finsberg). All that has happened is that a list of facts, 15 in number, has been submitted to the Select Committee, together with a list of witnesses who can speak to those facts. It was up to the Select Committee to decide whether to call those witnesses. To refer to facts backed up by witnesses as rubbish is an insult to the good name of the House.
§ Mr. SpeakerNevertheless, it is for the Select Committee itself to decide what it publishes. It is not a matter for me.