HC Deb 13 January 1997 vol 288 cc19-20W
Mr. Llew Smith

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will investigate the reasons for the delay in the delivery of his letter dated 31 October concerning the European Monetary Institute report on economic and monetary union to the Select Committee on European Legislation; and if he will make a statement on his Department's liaison with the Committee. [6805]

Mr. Kenneth Clarke

The letter in question was misdirected as a result of an administrative error. I shall ensure that the correct procedures are followed in future.

The European Legislation Committee published a report on 9 December entitled "European Documents on Economic and Monetary Union: The Scrutiny Process". Paragraph 29 of its report said— we acknowledge the Chancellor's punctilious approach to the requirements of scrutiny in this case as in many others. Timely information, often exceeding the strict requirements of the scrutiny process, and good explanatory memoranda, have made our task easier.