Select Committee on Environmental Audit Fourth Report

The Environmental Audit Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to consider the contribution of the policies and programmes of government to environmental protection and sustainable development; to audit performance against targets set by Ministers; and to report thereon. The constitution and powers are set out in full in Standing Order No. 152(A).

The Committee has up to sixteen members of whom a quorum for any formal proceedings is four. Members are appointed by the House and, unless discharged, remain on the Committee until the next dissolution of Parliament. The present membership of the Committee is: [1]

Mr Bob Blizzard (Labour, Waveney)	Mr Paul Keetch (Liberal Democrat, Hereford)[2]
Sir Richard Body (Conservative, Boston and Skegness)[3]	Mr Tim Loughton (Conservative, Worthing East & Shoreham)
Mrs Helen Brinton (Labour, Peterborough)	Rt Hon Michael Meacher (Labour, Oldham West & Royton)[4]
Mr Neil Gerrard (Labour, Walthamstow)[5]	Christine Russell (Labour, City of Chester)[6]
Mr Dominic Grieve (Conservative, Beaconsfield)	Mr Malcolm Savidge (Labour, Aberdeen North)
Mr John Horam (Conservative, Orpington)	Mr Jonathan R. Shaw (Labour, Chatham Aylesford)
Dr Brian Iddon (Labour, Bolton South East)	Joan Walley (Labour, Stoke-on-Trent North)
Mr Jon Owen Jones (Labour/Co-op, Cardiff Central)[7]

Mr John Horam was elected Chairman by the Committee on 25 November 1997.

The Committee has power to invite written evidence, require the submission of documents, examine witnesses and publish reports to the House accompanied by the evidence it has gathered.

The Committee may meet at any time (except when Parliament is prorogued between sessions or dissolved pending a general election) and may do so away from Westminster. It may inform itself by visits abroad and by the use of specialist advisers. The Committee may meet concurrently with the departmentally-related select committees, European Scrutiny Committee and any Lords committee; and may communicate its documents and evidence to any other committee appointed by either House.

Committee reports and evidence are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. Pages of a report are numbered in roman numerals; pages of evidence are numbered conventionally. In footnotes, references to oral evidence are indicated by 'Q' and the question number and references to written evidence by 'Ev' and a page number.

Committee publications (including press notices) are available on the Internet at http://www.parliament.uk/commons/selcom/eahome.htm the EAC homepage. Further details of the Committee's activities are given for each parliamentary session in the Sessional Returns series and the Committee's Minutes of Proceedings also published by The Stationery Office.

All correspondence should be addressed to: The Clerk, Environmental Audit Committee, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for inquiries is: 020 7219-5776 (fax:-2731); E-mail: [e-mail].

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1  Members were appointed to the Committee on 12 November 1997 unless otherwise indicated. Mr Matthew Taylor and Mr Cynog Dafis were added on 17 November 1997. Mr Taylor was discharged on 2 December 1997; Mr Dafis resigned as a Member of the House on 12 January 2000. Mr Norman Baker was added on 2 December 1997 and discharged on 4 February 2000 Back
2  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back
3  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back
4  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back
5  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back
6  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back
7  Mr Meacher was added on 19 December 1997 (with ex-officio membership in like manner to the Financial Secretary's membership of the Committee of Public Accounts); Mr Gerrard on 14 January 1999; Mr Jones on 25 November 1999, in place of Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West); Christine Russell on 14 December 1999, in place of Mr Paul Truswell; Sir Richard Body on 18 January 2000, in place of Mr Laurence Robertson; and Mr Keetch (Hereford) on 4 February 2000 in place of Mr Baker. Back

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Prepared 29 February 2000