§ Mr. Masonasked the Lord Privy Seal how many reports of Select Committees, excluding the Public Accounts Committee, have been issued since 1979; how many have been debated, naming the titles; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. BiffenThe number of reports, other than special reports, of Select Committees, excluding the Public Accounts Committee, the Committee and Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments and the Committee on European Legislation etc., published since 1979 is 359. In addition the Select Committee on Statutory Instruments has made 115 reports, the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments 194, and the Select Committee on European Legislation, and its predecessor, the Select Committee on European Secondary Legislation, 189.
Select Committee reports debated on motion in the House and referred to on the Order Paper as being relevant to debate in the House from October 1979 to April 1985 are listed in the appendix to the first report of the Liaison Committee on The Select Committee System, HC No. 363.
In addition, the following Select Committee reports, excluding those from the Public Accounts Committee, have been debated in the House or referred to on the Order Paper as being relevant to debate since April:
Debated on Motion:
Fifth Report from the Employment Committee on Wages Councils.
Referred to on the Order Paper as relevant to debate:
1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 Agriculture 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 Defence 4.0 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 Education, Science and Arts 4.0 4.0 4.0 5.0 5.0 4.0 Employment 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 Energy 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 4.0 4.0 Environment 3.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 5.0 5.0 European Legislation 8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 8.0 Foreign Affairs 4.0 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 Home Affairs 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 House of Commons (Services) 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 Members' Interests* 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 Privileges 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 Procedure 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 Public Accounts 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 Scottish Affairs 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 Social Services 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 Sound Broadcasting 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 Trade and Industry 5.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 Transport 3.0 3.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 Treasury and Civil Service 5.0 7.0 7.0 7.0 7.0 6.0 Welsh Affairs 3.0 3.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 3.0 * Of whom 2 are part-time. In addition, in each of these years, there have been 10 members of staff (of whom one was part-time) the greater part of whose duties was to service Select Committees generally.
For the reason given in the answer to the right hon. Gentleman of 23 January 1985 (Hansard, column 456), 372W
- First Report from the Defence Committee on The Use of Merchant Shipping for Defence Purposes.
- Third Report from the Defence Committee on Defence Commitments and Resources and the Defence Estimates 1985–86.
- Third Report from the Environment Committee on the Department of Environment's Main Estimates 1985–86.
- Fourth Report from the Environment Committee on the Property Services Agency Main Estimates, 1985–86.
- First Report from the House of Commons (Services) Committee on Information Technology: Members' Requirements.
- Second Report from the House of Commons (Services) Committee on Members' staff: Pressure on Accommodation and Facilities.
- Second Report from the Social Services Committee on Community Care.
- Third Report from Trade and Industry Committee on Trade with China.
§ Mr. Masonasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will list the Select Committee reports, excepting those of the Public Accounts Committee, whose recommendations have been accepted in full by Her Majesty's Government since 1979.
§ Mr. BiffenSelect Committee reports usually contain a number of recommendations, though that is not their only purpose. Many such recommendations have been accepted in full, but to analyse all reports, the Government replies to them and subsequent actions in the way requested would occasion undue expense.
§ Mr. Masonasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will give the annual figures of staff, full-time and part-time, serving the Select Committees since 1979 and the annual cost of manning these committees.
§ Mr. BiffenThe number of staff serving each Select Committee since 1979 is as follows, but in many cases Committee work comprises less than half the duties of the staff concerned:
the cost attributable to manning these Committees in each of these years could not be estimated without undue expense.
§ Mr. Boyesasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the places visited,
373Wthe number of hon. Members travelling, and the cost of the air fare for each hon. Member for the latest visit by each Select Committee.
Committee Places visited Number of Members travelling Cost per Member of air fare* £ Agriculture Paris and Bonn 5 148 Defence Norway and Sweden 8 432 Employment New Zealand (Auckland and Wellington) and Australia (Sydney and Melbourne) 7 1,805 Energy Hague 7 121 Environment Canada and United States (Toronto, Winnipeg, Richland, Seattle, Washington DC, Buffalo NY, Niagara) 7 1,611 European Legislation Athens 10 420 Foreign Affairs Moscow, Suzdal Vladimir 11 522 Home Affairs United States of America 8 930 House of Commons (Services) Washington, Ottawa, Montreal 5 1,153 Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration Wellington, Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne 5 1,874 Public Accounts Washington 10 916 Scottish Affairs Norway 7 450 Social Services Washington, Boston, Chicago, Nebraska, and California 6 1,778 Trade and Industry China 10 993 Transport Esbjerg (Denmark) and Hamburg 7 102 Treasury and Civil Service Sub-Committee Washington and New York 9 508 Brussels 4 129 Welsh Affairs Republic of Ireland 7 146 *Estimated where necessary.