Public Appointments (Hansard, 23 June 1999)

§ 7. Dr. Tony Wright (Cannock Chase)
What plans he has for further changes to the system of appointment to public bodies. [86786]

§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office (Mr. Peter Kilfoyle)
May I take this opportunity to congratulate my hon. Friend on his appointment as Chairman of the Public Administration Committee? I look forward to working with him.
The White Paper on modernising government makes clear our commitment to ensuring that public appointments are open to the widest possible field of candidates. I shall keep the current system of appointments under review to ensure that it continues to support that commitment.

§ Dr. Wright
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his answer and his kind words. He will know that one of the features of the public appointments system created by Nolan when he had to clean up the mess from the previous Government was that there should be independent members on selection panels. There is still a problem with the system, because the independent members come via Departments. Would it not be better if they came under the responsibility of the Commissioner for Public Appointments? Would not that give further confidence in the system?

§ Mr. Kilfoyle
As my hon. Friend knows, we have extended the remit of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. I should like to put on record my appreciation of the fine job that she is doing. We keep all the circumstances under review. It is more important to encourage a greater range of people to come forward, including women and members of the ethnic minorities, and to make greater use of the huge reservoir of potential and good will in the files of the public appointments unit.

§ Mr. Ian Bruce (South Dorset)
Will the Minister consider setting up a commission, independent of the Government, to investigate the response from 1159 Departments to Members' letters? The report that he talked about, on the lateness of correspondence, dealt with 1997, not 1998, and even it was six months late. A letter for me arrived this morning five months late. Surely we should have an independent public body investigating why Ministers do not respond to letters.

§ Mr. Kilfoyle
If the hon. Gentleman had been here earlier, he would have heard a full response on that point. The role of the Commissioner for Public Appointments is to ensure that the principles of transparency and accountability are met and that we do not get into the mess that the previous Government got into, with a series of particularly partial appointments in the unelected sector.

§ Mr. Robert Maclennan (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross)
Do the Government prefer the view of Mr. Michael Portillo to that of the Leader of the Opposition on whether the payment of money to a political party should disqualify someone from public appointments; and on whether participation in politics by many people in public affairs should be welcomed?

§ Mr. Kilfoyle
It is hard to choose between the Leader of the Opposition and Mr. Michael Portillo. I shall leave it to the Conservatives to decide who speaks for them. We maintain the principle that appointments should be made on merit. That is the Government's overriding concern.