Parliamentary committees of the United Kingdom

The parliamentary committees of the United Kingdom are committees of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Each consists of a small number of Members of Parliament from the House of Commons, or peers from the House of Lords, or a mix of both, appointed to deal with particular areas or issues; most are made up of members of the Commons. The majority of parliamentary committees are select committees. The remit of these committees vary depending on whether they are committees of the House of Commons or the House of Lords.

Committee meetings take place in committee rooms at the Palace of Westminster (right) and Portcullis House (left), often in front of press and media or in private sessions

House of Commons

Select committees

Select committees in the Commons are designed to oversee the work of departments and agencies, examine topical issues affecting the country or individual regions or nations, and review and advise on the procedures, workings and rules of the House.

  • Departmental select committees are designed to oversee and examine the work of individual government departments and any related departmental bodies and agencies.
  • Topical select committees examine topical issues of importance.
  • Internal select committees have responsibility with respect to the day-to-day running of Parliament.[1]
Departmental select committees
Committee Chair Responsibility
Name Since
Business and Trade Select Committee Liam Byrne 2023 Department for Business and Trade and related bodies
Culture, Media and Sport Committee Caroline Dinenage 2023 Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Defence Select Committee Tobias Ellwood 2020 Ministry of Defence
Education Select Committee Robin Walker 2022 Department for Education and related bodies
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee Robert Goodwill 2022 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and associated bodies
Foreign Affairs Select Committee Alicia Kearns 2022 Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and associated bodies
Health and Social Care Select Committee Steve Brine 2022 Department of Health and Social Care and related bodies
Home Affairs Select Committee Diana Johnson 2021 Home Office and related bodies
International Development Select Committee Sarah Champion 2020 Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and associated bodies
Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee Angus MacNeil 2023 Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and related bodies
Justice Select Committee Bob Neill 2015 Ministry of Justice, related agencies including the Crown Prosecution Service, and other agencies that report to the Lord Chancellor
Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee Clive Betts 2010 Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Simon Hoare 2019 The work of the devolved government and the Northern Ireland Office
Science and Technology Select Committee Greg Clark 2020 Government Office for Science, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and related bodies
Scottish Affairs Committee Pete Wishart 2015 The work of the devolved government and the Scotland Office
Transport Select Committee Iain Stewart 2022 Department for Transport
Treasury Select Committee Harriett Baldwin 2022 Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs
Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb 2020 The Wales Office and UK Government policies which impact Wales
Work and Pensions Select Committee Stephen Timms 2020 Department for Work and Pensions
Topical select committees
Committee Chair Responsibility
Name Since
Environmental Audit Select Committee Philip Dunne 2020 Examines the contribution of government policies to environmental protection and sustainable development
European Scrutiny Committee Bill Cash 2010 Examines key EU documents, as well as deciding which documents should be debated on the floor of the Commons
Liaison Committee Bernard Jenkin 2020 Examines the work of select committees in general, as well as hearing annual evidence from the Prime Minister
Public Accounts Select Committee Meg Hillier 2015 Examines government and parliamentary expenditure to ensure honesty and fairness
Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Select Committee William Wragg 2020 Examines the work and administration of the Civil Service, as well as reports from the Parliamentary Ombudsman
Arms Export Controls Committee Mark Garnier 2020 Composed of members of the Business, Defence, Foreign Affairs and International Development committees, examines exports of arms from the UK
Regulatory Reform Committee Stephen McPartland 2017 Examines draft legislative reform orders as proposed under the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006, as well as regulation in general
Select Committee on Statutory Instruments Jessica Morden 2017 Examines all statutory instruments laid before the Commons
Women and Equalities Committee Caroline Nokes 2020 Examines the expenditure, administration and policy of the Government Equalities Office
Petitions Cat Smith 2023 Oversees petitions submitted to Parliament
Internal select committees
Committee Chair Responsibility
Name Since
Administration Committee Paul Beresford 2017 Examines the services offered to members of the Commons, as well as services offered to the public
Backbench Business Committee Ian Mearns 2015 Determines business to be debated at certain times set aside for backbenchers
Finance Committee Nick Brown 2021 Examines the budget and expenditure of the House of Commons, including the administration budget
Committee on Standards Chris Bryant 2020 Oversees Parliamentary standards and members' interests and conduct
Committee of Privileges Considers specific matters relating to privileges referred to it by the House
Procedure Committee Karen Bradley 2020 Examines the practice and procedures of the Commons in dealing with public business
Committee of Selection Bill Wiggin 2017 Recommends the appointment of members to parliamentary committees

General committees

Others

House of Lords

Lords select committee c.2013

The House of Lords appoint Sessional select committees to examine and explore general issues such as the constitution or the economy; the European Union Committee scrutinises EU action via its sub-committees; each session Special Inquiry committees are appointed to examine specific issues.

Sessional

Special Inquiry (2019–21 Session)

  • Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 Select Committee
  • Food, Poverty, Health & the Environment Select Committee
  • Social and Economic Impact of Gambling Select Committee
  • Democracy & Digital Technologies Select Committee

Legislative

Internal

Domestic

Joint house committees

Joint Committees are committees formed to examine a particular issue, whose membership is from both the Commons and the Lords.

Former committees

Occasionally, committees will be discharged. This occurs when existing committees are no longer required or have their responsibilities transferred to a different committee, effectively rendering the original committee void. It is more common, however, for committees to be discharged as a result of the abolition of government departments, for example the abolition of the Department of Education and Skills in June 2007 resulted in the abolition of the Education and Skills Select Committee shortly afterwards.[2]

Departmental

Domestic

All five domestic committees were abolished in 2005 and replaced by a single committee – the Administration Committee.

Internal

Legislative

Regional

The House of Commons set up eight regional select committees in November 2008, whose members were first appointed on 3 March 2009. The committees were formed of five Labour members, as opposed to the nine members from various parties as was agreed in the original motion, due to the refusal of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats to nominate any members as a sign of their opposition to setting up the committees.[5] The resolution that formed the committees expired at the end of the 2005/10 Parliament. The succeeding coalition government of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats chose not to renew it.[6]

Topical

  • Barnett Formula Select Committee
  • House of Lords Select Committee on Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England
  • Intergovernmental Organisations Select Committee
  • Select Committee on Regulators

Internal

Domestic

Joint

  • Joint Committee on House of Lords Reform
  • Joint Committee of Tax Simplification

References

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