STANDING COMMITTEES

Standing Committees in the House of Commons have a number of different functions.

1.	Standing Committees lettered A, B, C, etc, are constituted as often as necessary to consider Public Bills in detail. Their membership is announced after a Bill has been allocated to them, and the Committees are constituted afresh for each new Bill. The 1st and 2nd Scottish Standing Committees act similarly for Bills relating solely to Scotland. Special Standing Committees (SSC) or Special Scottish Standing Committees (SSSC) may be established to consider, and take evidence upon, Bills. For further details, see Factsheet 43 available from the Public Information Office.
2.	Reports of debates in Standing Committees are printed in the Official Report of Standing Committee A (B, C etc) for each sitting. These are published by, and available from, and, unless the Committee sits late, are generally available the day after the sitting.
3.	The Scottish Grand, Welsh Grand and Northern Ireland Committees exist largely to debate matters remitted to them by the House. They are constituted afresh for each topic. The Scottish and Welsh Grand Committees also debate the principle of Bills relating to Scotland and Wales if the Bills are referred to them under a motion by a Minister. Except for formal purposes this constitutes the Second Reading stage of such a Bill. The Scottish Grand Committee also (at designated sittings) has a question time, debates on the motion for the adjournment and adjournment debates. For further information see Factsheet 65 available from the Public Information Office.
4.	Delegated Legislation Standing Committees (formerly known as SI Committees) are constituted to deal with particular items of secondary legislation referred to them by the House. Their composition is not noted in this Bulletin. Any Member may attend and speak.
5.	The European Standing Committees (ESC) lettered A and B are constituted for the duration of a Session and consider matters referred to them by the House. Their composition appears in No 2 (p14), amendments No 3 (p12), No 5 (p15). Chairmen are appointed for consideration of individual documents. Any Member may attend and speak. For further details see Factsheet 56 available from the Public Information Office. Committees A and B deal with matters within the responsibilities of different Departments. The list is as follows: ESC A: Agriculture, Fisheries and Food; Transport; Environment; Forestry Commission (and analogous responsibilities of Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Offices): ESC B: Other Departments

Current Standing Committees, Details of Membership

Bill	Committee	Bulletin issue and page
		(amendments/additions)
National Heritage [HL]	A	No 11 (p19)
Finance	B	No 11 (p20)
Prisons (Alcohol Testing)	C	No 10 (p20), No 11 (p19,20), this issue
Horserace Totalisator Board [HL]	C	No 10 (p20), this issue
Social Security Administration (Fraud)	E	No 6 (p15)
Scottish Legal Services	1st Scot SC	No 11 (p20)
Ombudsman and Commissioner
for Local Administration in Scotland
Confiscation of Alcohol (Young Persons)	C	this issue**
Companies (Millennium Computer	C	this issue**
Compliance)
Sex Offenders	D	this issue
Flood Prevention and Land Drainage	1st Scot SC	this issue****
(Scotland)

*	Membership, dates of sitting not yet announced
**	Chairmen, dates of sitting not yet announced
***	Chairmen, membership, dates of sitting not yet announced
****	dates of sitting not yet announced

MEMBERSHIP OF COMMITTEES

SC C: Prisons (Alcohol Testing) Bill

Ann Widdecombe discharged, Mr David Maclean appointed

SC C Confiscation of Alcohol (Young Persons) Bill

Mr David Amess	Mr Peter Atkinson	Judith Church
Dr Michael Clark	Ann Clwyd	Mr Tom Cox
Mr Chris Davies	Jeff Ennis	Mr Nigel Evans
Mr David Faber	Mr George Howarth	Mr John Hutton
Mr Timothy Kirkhope	Mr Andrew Mackinlay	Dr Robert Spink
Mr Michael Stern	Mr Walter Sweeney

SC C Companies (Millenium Computer Compliance) Bill

Mr David Atkinson	Mr Spencer Batiste	Mr Richard Caborn
Mr Simon Coombs	Sir John Cope	Mr Tom Cox
Mr Lawrence Cunliffe	Mr Tam Dalyell	Sir Anthony Durant
Dr John Gilbert	Sir Michael Grylls	Mr Calum Macdonald
Dr John Marek	Sir Geoffrey Pattie	Mr David Shaw
Rev. Martin Smyth	Mr Ian Taylor	Mr Stephen Timms
Mr John Townend

SC D Sex Offenders Bill

Sir Roger Sims, Sir James Molyneaux (Jt Chairmen)

Mr Julian Brazier	Mr Matthew Carrington	Mr Michael Clapham
Ann Coffey	Mr Nigel Evans	Mrs Llin Golding
Mr John Greenway	Mr John Hutton	Jane Kennedy
Mr Timothy Kirkhope	Mr David Lidington	Mr John McFall
Lady Olga Maitland	Mr Alun Michael	Mr Eric Pickles
Sir Wyn Roberts	Peter Thurnham

1st Scot SC: Flood Prevention and Land Drainage (Scotland) Bill

Mr John Maxton, Mrs Ann Winterton (Jt Chairmen)

Mrs Irene Adams	Mr Malcolm Chisholm	Mr Eric Clarke
Mr Michael Connarty	Roseanna Cunningham	Mr Nirj Joseph Deva
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton	Mr Sam Galbraith
Mr Phil Gallie	Dr Norman A Godman	Mr Thomas Graham
Mr Bernard Jenkin	Mr George Kynoch	Mr William McKelvey
Mr Patrick McLoughlin	Sir Hector Munro	Mr Raymond S. Robertson
Mr Allan Stewart	Mr Bill Walker

CHAIRMEN OF COMMITTEES

SC C: Horserace Totalisator Board Bill [HL]

Sir Michael Shersby (Chairman)

STANDING COMMITTEES:
MEETINGS 27 - 31 JANUARY 1997

Standing Committees on BILLS and DELEGATED LEGISLATION

TUESDAY 28 JANUARY

SC A:	National Heritage Bill [HL] (Clause 1 - end, one with amendment)
SC B:	Finance Bill (except Clauses 40, 62, 68, 82, 92, Schedules 7, 13) (Sittings motion, order of consideration, Clause 1. Clause 2 under consideration)
SC E:	Social Security Administration (Fraud) Bill (Clause 16 - 17, 20 - end, some with amendments)
1st Scot SC:	Scottish Legal Services Ombudsman and Commissioner for Local Administration in Scotland Bill (Clause 1 - end, some with amendments)
1st DLSC:	Draft Potato Industry Development Council Order 1997
2nd DLSC:	Draft Sheffield Development Corporation (Area and Constitution) Order 1997
3rd DLSC:	Draft Executry Practioners (Scotland) and draft Independent Qualified Conveyancers (Scotland) Regulations 1997,
4th DLSC:	Joint Consultative Committee Order 1996 (SI 1996, No 2820)

WEDNESDAY 29 JANUARY

SC C:	Prisons (Alcohol Testing) Bill (Clause 1 - end)
5th DLSC:	Value Added Tax (Registered Social Landlords) (No 2) Order 1997 (SI 1997, No 51)
6th DLSC:	Draft Professions Supplementary to Medicine (Prosthetists and Orthotists Board) Order of Council 1997

THURSDAY 30 JANUARY

SC B:	Finance Bill (except Clauses 40, 62, 68, 82, 92, Schedules 7, 13) (Clause 2-15, Schedules 1,2)
7th DLSC:	Draft Industrial Training Levy (Engineering and Construction Board) Order 1997

EUROPEAN STANDING COMMITTEE

WEDNESDAY 29 JANUARY

ESC B: Sir James Molyneaux (Chairman)

Document No 7050/96 relating to Artists' Resale Rights

STANDING COMMITTEES:
FORTHCOMING MEETINGS 3 - 7 FEBRUARY 1997

Standing Committees on BILLS and DELEGATED LEGISLATION

TUESDAY 4 FEBRUARY

SC D: Sex Offenders Bill, 10.30 am, Room 9

WEDNESDAY 5 FEBRUARY

THURSDAY 6 FEBRUARY

7th DLSC: Draft Race Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1997, 10.30 am, Room 12

SCOTTISH GRAND COMMITTEE

MONDAY 3 FEBRUARY

Mr John Maxton, Mr Michael J Martin (Jt Chairmen)

Victoria Hall, Selkirk, 10.30 am

Debate - On a motion for the adjournment on education and local government finance in Scotland (Liberal Democrat motion)

Adjournment Debate - Mr John Home Robertson on investigation of the affairs of the Algrade Trust by the Scottish Charities Office

FORTHCOMING MEETINGS OF THE SCOTTISH GRAND COMMITTEE

MONDAY 17 FEBRUARY

Town Hall, Montrose, 10.30am

Oral Questions

Debate - On a motion for the adjournment on housing and local government in Scotland (Scottish National Party motion)