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Administration Committee

The right hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst has made a distinctive contribution to the work of the House, as he did to the European Parliament. I first met him when he was an enthusiastic Member of the European Parliament, which he has tried to live down ever since. We all have records to defend, and at some stage we will be able to debate European matters, but I need to make progress. I return to the fascinating subject of the terms of reference of the Modernisation Committee, which Members will have noticed are slightly changed from those in the previous Parliament. The function of the Committee will be to consider how the House operates and to make recommendations for modernisation, rather than being limited to the consideration of the practices and procedures of the House. That is intended to ensure that the Modernisation Committee is not constrained in its field of inquiry. It would, for example, be able to consider matters touching on the administration of the House. Motion 34 provides for the membership of the Liaison Committee. As in the past, it will include the Chairmen of all Select Committees. In addition, as in the previous Parliament, the motion nominates the Father of the House, my right hon. Friend the Member for Swansea, West (Mr. Williams), in anticipation of the fact that the Committee might wish to appoint a Chairman who does not also represent the interests of a particular Committee.