How effective are Select Committees?

2026

On the issue of parliamentary accountability, how effective are Select Committees in holding the Executive accountable to Parliament?

Reply 1

SiAz

You already know the answer to this one. Surely.

In my own experience it depends upon the seriousness of the issue.

A select committee on excessive tip ex use in westminster would as straight as a die. Anything remotely serious...you knows the rest.

Reply 2

Ezekiel

-1984-

On the issue of parliamentary accountability, how effective are Select Committees in holding the Executive accountable to Parliament?

In my opinion Select committees have profound weakness. When dealing with ministers, a committee can do little more than request information its little more than a talking shop. While ordinary witnesses can be required to attend and give evidence members of parliament and peers can refuse to testify. Personally when the government gets round to dealing with house of lords reform I hope they change that aspect of select committees. Minsters having to attend might not work actually because the health minister could be called over a month to several select committees which would waste a lot of their time. An obviously this could be used by the opposition as a weapon.

Quite alot of committee members are not good questioners and fail to pursue consistent lines of inquiry, committees have no formal sanctions they can employ in relation to the government. BBC parliament is really good at highlighting this. Overall I suppose the system has proved itself valuable and cost effective as an addition to the House’s ability to perform its proper function of holding ministers to account

Reply 3

yawn

I refer to the Education and Employment Select Committee's report on 'Highly Able Children'.

This report completely changed the attitudes of educators to the highly able.

Formerly, there was widespread and erroneous opinion that highly able children would achieve regardless and that any extra funding should be concentrated on children who were less able.

We only have to look at the 'Gifted and Talented' programme in the UK to see how that entrenched mindset has been persuaded otherwise by the Select Committee.

So, in this instance at least - very effective!

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