New procedures are now in place for the election of Chairs of the Commons select committees. In order to give more powers to members themselves - it has been made harder for whips (both on the Government and Opposition sides) to choose the members and chairs. Back in 2001 a clumsy attempt by the Government to replace two Chairs seen as awkward backfired badly.
The party of a particular committee's Chair has been determined by agreement - to ensure that chairs are fairly allocated around the House
Business, Innovation and Skills - Labour
Children, Schools and Families [Education] - Conservative
Communities and Local Government - Labour
Culture, Media and Sport - Conservative
Defence - Conservative
Energy and Climate Change - Conservative
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Conservative
Foreign Affairs - Conservative
Health - Conservative
Home Affairs - Labour
International Development - Liberal Democrat
Justice - Liberal Democrat
Northern Ireland - Conservative
Science and Technology - Labour
Scottish Affairs - Labour
Transport - Labour
Treasury - Conservative
Welsh Affairs - Conservative
Work and Pensions - Labour
Environmental Audit - Labour
Procedure - Conservative
Public Administration - Conservative
Public Accounts - Labour
To be valid, nominations for Chairs must contain a signed statement made by the candidate declaring willingness to stand, and must be accompanied by the signatures of fifteen Members elected to the House as members of the same party as the candidate, or ten per cent of the Members of that party, whichever is the lower.
The ballot will take place on Wednesday 9 June between 10 am and 5 pm. Nominations will close at 5 pm on Tuesday 8 June.
The House of Commons Library produces each month a publication called - "Economic Indicators". The title suggests a rather boring monthly set of figures - in fact each edition gives the background to a number of the key indicators - and includes articles on particular subjects. For instance this month's edition includes articles entitled
