Part of Inquiries Bill [Lords] – in a Public Bill Committee at 2:30 pm on 22 March 2005.
Alistair Carmichael
Shadow Spokesperson (Energy and Climate Change), Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Energy and Climate Change)
2:30,
22 March 2005
The Committee will recall that I was speaking as the whistle blew this morning. I do not know whether that entitles me to make another point, but I had just drawn to the Committee’s attention the fact that both amendments would give the Minister the opportunity to consult other parties on the terms of reference for any inquiry to be convened under the Bill. The intention is to widen the range of people who should be consulted.
I acknowledge that the Government conceded, properly, in the other place that consultation should take place between the Minister responsible and the person nominated as chairman. However, there is a great deal to be said for the consultation being as wide as the Minister can make it. This suggestion perhaps moves on from what the hon. Member for Huntingdon (Mr. Djanogly) said about openness and independence. If there is scope for consultation on the terms of the remit with interested parties beyond the chairman, it would be in the interests of the standing of the inquiry to carry that out. Currently, the consultation is fairly narrowly circumscribed by the Bill and it takes place purely with the chairman. Other parties would not have to be consulted on every occasion, but it would be sensible for the Minister to have the power to consult them.
The two amendments would have a broadly similar effect. Amendment No. 38 may sit more easily in the Bill, but there is no great distinction to be drawn between them. They represent a fairly modest extension of the Bill that I think will find favour with the Government, so I leave it to the Minister to choose which to accept.
A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.
Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.
During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.
When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.
The House of Lords. When used in the House of Lords, this phrase refers to the House of Commons.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.
Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.
In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.
The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.
