Tag Archives: Hannah Kelly

Changing parliamentary procedure: a guide for MPs 

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House of Commons procedure is a key factor in how parliament works. But, at times, it can be a source of frustration and can appear difficult to change. Nonetheless, history shows that procedural reform is possible – and backbench MPs have often been vital to bringing it about. A new Unit report, published today, assesses how change comes about, analysing successful past campaigns to identify lessons for would-be reformers in this parliament. In this post the report’s authors – Meg Russell, Lisa James and Hannah Kelly – discuss some key conclusions.

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Assessing the House of Commons Backbench Business Committee 15 years on

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 The House of Commons Backbench Business Committee was established in 2010, following recommendations from the ‘Wright Committee’ on reform of the Commons. At this 15-year point the committee is reviewing its operation, and in this post Meg Russell and Hannah Kelly summarise their submission to the review, which is due to be published shortly. They conclude that the Backbench Business Committee was an important innovation, but that changes are needed to get back to the Wright Committee’s vision of it helping facilitate a more responsive and independent House of Commons. 

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The Modernisation Committee: revisiting past experience 

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September’s government reshuffle means that there is a new Leader of the Commons, and therefore a change to the leadership of the House’s Modernisation Committee. The new chair, Alan Campbell, might usefully study the committee’s 1997–2010 predecessor. In this post, Tom Fleming and Hannah Kelly summarise the key findings from a new article reviewing that earlier committee’s record. 

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House of Commons procedure: why does it matter and how does it change? 

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House of Commons procedure combines formal rules with conventions and precedents, providing the framework for conducting business and making decisions. Hannah Kelly, Lisa James and Meg Russell explain why it matters, how it evolves, and what future changes have been proposed. 

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The House of Commons Modernisation Committee: background, opportunities, and potential pitfalls

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The House of Commons has voted to establish a new Modernisation Committee. Tom Fleming and Hannah Kelly explore the opportunities and challenges facing this new committee, drawing on their recent Constitution Unit report on past approaches to delivering House of Commons reform.

Last week MPs voted to establish a new select committee, the Modernisation Committee, ‘to consider reforms to House of Commons procedures, standards, and working practices’. This proposal was brought forward by the Leader of the House, Lucy Powell, and was promised in the Labour manifesto.

The name implies similarity with the previous Modernisation Committee, which was appointed under the last Labour government between 1997 and 2010, and which we analysed in our recent Constitution Unit report, Delivering House of Commons Reform: What Works?. This blogpost therefore draws on that research to evaluate the opportunities and potential pitfalls facing the new committee.

A new Modernisation Committee

The committee will have 14 members – nine Labour MPs, three Conservatives, and two Liberal Democrats – to be nominated via a future motion from the Leader of the House. It will include the Leader of the House herself (who expects to chair the committee) and the Conservatives’ Shadow Leader, Chris Philp. Though Powell wasn’t explicit in last week’s debate about how other members of the committee would be selected, Philp indicated that they would be chosen by their parties’ whips.

The committee’s composition will therefore be unusual in two ways. First, House of Commons select committees usually only include backbench MPs. Second, since 2010 the members of most select committees have been chosen by their fellow MPs via intra-party elections, not by party whips.

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