Administrative review and oversight : the experience of Westminster
Shephard, Mark; Pelizzo, R. and Staplehurst, R., eds. (2004) Administrative review and oversight : the experience of Westminster. In: Legislatures and Oversight. Series on contemporary issues in parliamentary development . World Bank Institute Publications, pp. 40-46.
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Abstract
Parliament has been left behind by far-reaching changes to the constitution, government and society in the past two decades. Despite recent innovations, particularly in the handling of legislation, the central question of Westminster's scrutiny of the executive has not been addressed. (Report of the Hansard Society Commission on Parliamentary Scrutiny, 2001: x) Prior to the Labour Party's election victory in 1997, Labour's manifesto promised an 'effective House of Commons' to be realised in large part through the creation of a special Select Committee with remit to review procedures in light of the 'need for modernisation'. Shortly after victory, Labour established a 'Modernisation Committee' chaired by the Leader of the Commons and with a remit to review four key areas: the legislative process; ministerial accountability; working practices (such as sitting hours); and the style and forms of proceedings. Between 1997 and 2003 the Committee published 19 reports starting with a report on the legislative process. However, to date, most of the reports have focused on the modernisation of working practices and the style and form of proceedings. Reports that deal with improving the effectiveness of ministerial accountability have been notably lacking. Consequently, the view of the Hansard Society that 'parliamentary reform has been one of improving the efficiency of Parliament, but not its effectiveness' appears just as valid three years on.
ORCID iDs
Shephard, Mark ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5350-4734; Pelizzo, R. and Staplehurst, R.-
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Item type: Book Section ID code: 1510 Dates: DateEvent2004PublishedSubjects: Political Science > Political institutions (Europe) > Great Britain Department: Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) > Government and Public Policy > Politics Depositing user: Strathprints Administrator Date deposited: 04 Sep 2006 Last modified: 21 Sep 2024 00:28 URI: https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/1510