---

Parliamentary Representation (England)

I shall address the question of Select Committees now, because I want to address the idea of an English Grand Committee and say what we are doing to introduce proposals to reflect my hon. Friend's concerns. I accept that we need to do more to consider how better to represent the regions of this country. Since last year, we have been introducing proposals, which I shall address shortly. My hon. Friend asked me what I am proud of. I am proud of this Government's record on constitutional reform and renewal. It is genuinely radical, and it is doing a great deal for the people of this country. There has been a lot of discussion about an English Grand Committee. The hon. Member for Epping Forest said that it should be actively considered. We are actively considering it. We have actively considered it, and it is difficult to see what benefits such a Committee would bring. An English Grand Committee that directly mirrored the other two would have 529 members. It would be impossible for such a Committee to work in the same way as other Grand Committees. We have, however, proposed the establishment of regional Select Committees to ensure that English regions' different views are taken properly into account, which would support the network of regional Ministers that we have introduced, and which is already working well. We believe that to be a much more effective way in which to ensure that the varied needs of the English people are given focused consideration, particularly in relation to matters that cross the boundaries of even the largest local authorities. Although I cannot agree with my hon. Friend's proposals in their entirety, I hope that he would agree that our proposals at least address the sorts of concerns that he outlined, and believes me when I say that we will bring this forward.