The Defence Committee is appointed under Standing
Order No 152 to examine the expenditure, administration and policy
of the Ministry of Defence and associated public bodies.
The Committee consists of 11 Members, of whom
the quorum is three. Unless the House otherwise orders, all Members
nominated to the Committee continue to be members of it for the
remainder of the Parliament.
The Committee has power:
(a) to send for persons, papers and records,
to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House, to adjourn
from place to place, and to report from time to time;
(b) to appoint specialist advisers either
to supply information which is not readily available or to elucidate
matters of complexity within the Committee's order of reference;
(c) to communicate to any other committee
or sub-committee appointed under the same Standing Order (and
to the European Scrutiny Committee, to the Committee of Public
Accounts, to the Deregulation Committee and to the Environmental
Audit Committee) its evidence and any other documents relating
to matters of common interest;
(d) to meet concurrently with any other
committee or sub-committee appointed under the same Standing Order
for the purposes of deliberating, taking evidence, or considering
draft reports, or with the European Scrutiny Committee or any
of its sub-committees for the purpose of deliberating or taking
evidence.
The membership of the Committee is as follows:
| Mr Bruce George | Mr Jimmy Hood |
| Mr Crispin Blunt | Mr Mike Hancock |
CBE
| Mr Julian Brazier TD | Mr John McWilliam |
| Mr Jamie Cann | Mrs Laura Moffatt
| | Mr Harry Cohen | Ms Dari Taylor |
| Mr Michael Colvin | |
Mr Bruce George was elected Chairman on 16
July 1997
Mr Menzies Campbell was discharged, and Mr Mike Hancock
was added, on 1 February 1999.
The cost of preparing for publication the Shorthand
Minutes of Evidence published with this Report was £1,272.41.
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