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Administration Committee

It is probably wise to move on to the next fascinating motion. Motion 7 relates to the size of some Select Committees. It proposes that the size of the Defence, Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs, Trade and Industry and Treasury Committees should increase from 11 to 14 members, reflecting the considerable interest in serving on those Committees. It proposes that the size of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee should reduce from 17 to 14 members and that the size of the Regulatory Reform Committee should reduce from 18 to 14. I appreciate that when the Modernisation Committee recommended a slightly larger increase in the size of the departmental Select Committees in 2002, there was some opposition from the Liaison Committee on the ground that it would inhibit Committee cohesion. The reason for proposing a modest increase today is simply that the interest of Members in serving on some of the Committees is very great. I believe that there is value in ensuring that more Back Benchers are given the opportunity to be involved in the important work of scrutiny that the departmental Select Committees undertake. Motion 8 makes minor changes to the Standing Orders to reflect the establishment of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. Motions 9 to 31 are nominations to Select Committees in the name of the Chairman of the Committee of Selection. I appreciate that these motions have taken a little time to come before the House—longer than I would have liked—but it is very much to be welcomed that most of the Select Committees will, subject to the agreement of the House today, be up and running before the summer recess. For the first time, as I have said, those nominations are the product, in the Labour party at least, of a transparent party process, and it is inevitable that this should have taken a little time. We hope that the Committee of Selection will be able to bring forward motions to nominate the Science and Technology, Welsh Affairs, and Finance and Services Committees as soon as possible. I remain committed to strengthening the Select Committee system. Since 2002, there has been a significant increase in the staff resources available to Select Committees and their activity has increased greatly. I will not pretend that this activity is always welcomed by Departments, but that is as it should be. It is widely recognised that the Select Committees now play an important part in our democratic life: they are a crucial check on the work of Government. I pay tribute to the work of Members who served on Committees in the last Parliament, and I anticipate continued vigorous activity in the Parliament ahead. Motion 32 makes provision for the first meeting of the Joint Committee on Human Rights. Motion 33 provides for the re-establishment and nomination of the Modernisation Committee. The Committee has done valuable work since 1997, but I believe that there remains much more that it can usefully look at. Although I know that some Conservative Members are not enthusiasts for modernisation—