Introduction by The Speaker
This report of the House of Commons Commission for
2002/03 chronicles a challenging year for the House administration:
supporting increased levels of activity in a wide range of services;
responding to new demands upon us as a result of legislative and
other changes; and making plans for the future.
In previous years, this report has in effect been
a series of different reports: one from the perspective of the
Commission, one from the Board of Management, and one from each
Department of the House. This year, for the first time, the annual
report reflects the developing corporate nature of our administration,
and the strategic character of our planning. It sets out how we
have tackled the four core tasks set by the Commission: supporting
the House and its committees; supporting individual Members and
their staff; providing information and access to the public; and
maintaining the heritage of buildings, objects and documents.
It also shows how our plans for the future take forward our eight
developmental objectives.
Much of the work of supporting any parliamentary
institution is often described as 'business as usual'; but, as
will be clear from the pages that follow, in the last year this
included significant increases in activity - in questions and
amendments tabled, select committee work, pages of Hansard published,
network usage, meals served, and in many other areas. The need
for flexibility was underlined by the speedy and effective arrangements
made to support the recall of the House on 24 September 2002.
'Business as usual' involves delivering high-quality
services in a demanding environment; but at the same time the
House administration has had to cope with change. The most evident
was the introduction of new sitting hours, on an experimental
basis, from January 2003. Although some areas of work have been
little affected, the changes have put some groups of staff under
considerable additional pressure. With the help of the Board of
Management, the Commission is monitoring the effects and assessing
the longer-term implications.
As an administration we continue to respond to rapid
change in the technology of information and communications, both
with new systems and new ways of working; we are strengthening
our risk management and contingency planning; we are preparing
for the requirements that the Freedom of Information Act 2000
will impose upon us; we have successfully implemented resource
accounting and budgeting; and we are meeting a range of new business
requirements, such as e-tabling of questions, draft bills, and
core tasks for select committees. On a more sombre note, we have
had to respond to the increased terrorist threat with new security
measures.
We already co-operate closely with the administration
of the House of Lords in a number of shared services (such as
estates, works services and information and communications technology),
or services provided by one House to the other (such as the Parliamentary
Archives, the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology,
the Education Unit and the Central Tours Office). With the recent
establishment by the House of Lords of a House Committee with
functions similar to those of the Commission in respect of this
House, we look forward to closer joint working in the future.
The cash outturn for the Administration Estimate
for 2002/03 showed a 0.4 per cent underspend on the Estimate of
£141.2 million. The Commission has agreed a medium-term financial
strategy which will provide a modest additional sum over the next
four years for essential investment. The House administration
seeks to achieve value for money in all its activities, and we
are grateful for the support of the Audit Committee in pursuing
this objective. To put our expenditure in a wider context, and
as one of the tasks of the House is to call the Executive to account,
it is worth noting that the cost of supporting all the House's
activities is equivalent to some 0.03 per cent of general Government
expenditure.
In a complex organisation which relies on high levels
of knowledge and skill, we attach great importance to training
and developing staff, who are our principal resource. They need
to be equipped to respond to the changing demands of the House
and the environment in which we operate. We are also strongly
committed to increasing the diversity of our workforce.
I take particular pleasure in expressing the thanks
of the House of Commons Commission to all the staff of the House
for what they have achieved over the past year. I also record
our appreciation for those Members who have contributed to the
work of the administration, both through the domestic committees
and in other ways.
I would like to mark the special contribution of
two outstanding servants of the House. Sir William McKay, KCB,
the Clerk of the House and Chief Executive of the House Service,
retired on 31 December 2002 after 41 years' service. Bill McKay
combined his profound knowledge and understanding of every aspect
of the House with the new responsibilities of Chief Executive
following the Braithwaite Review, and oversaw a period of major
change in the House administration. I am glad that he will retain
a link with the House through his Editorship of the next edition
of Erskine May from his new post as Professor in the School
of Law at the University of Aberdeen. Ian Church, the Editor of
the Official Report, joined the House in 1972 after an
early career in journalism, and retired on 18 October 2002. He
became Editor in 1989, saw Hansard successfully through a time
of great technological change, and was the longest-serving member
of the Board of Management. Both Bill McKay and Ian Church have
our best wishes for the future.
Improving public understanding and knowledge of the
House, and thereby increasing its accessibility, is one of the
Commission's key aims. It is especially important at a time when
there is a widespread feeling that Parliament needs to do more
to "re-connect" with the public. Pages 33 to 40 of this
report describe the contribution which the House administration
is making to this effort, through information and services delivered
via the internet, educational work and the schools programme,
the work of the Information Office, visitor tours, broadcasting
and webcasting of proceedings, and in many other ways.
I hope that this annual report, too, will contribute
to a greater understanding of the work of the House of Commons
and how it is supported.
Michael J. Martin MP
Chairman of the House of Commons Commission
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