Submission from Barbara Follett MP
Thank you for your letter of 8 January 2004
about the sitting hours of the House of Commons. Please accept
my apologies for this very delayed reply and my thanks for taking
the trouble to consult colleagues on this vexed question.
As you know, I am a member of the Modernisation
Select Committee and very much in favour of the new hours. However,
I do feel that they need adjustment and improvement to fall into
your third, broad, camp.
Like you, I am keen to achieve a consensus which
allows us to develop a more durable timetable. I acknowledge that
the new hours do cause problems for Select Committees, Standing
Committees and catering. I would, therefore, like to propose the
following:
1. Standing committees should meet at 9.25
am not 8.55 am in future.
2. Party meetings should be moved from Wednesday
mornings to allow Select Committees longer sittings on that day.
3. Private Members' business should be moved
from Fridays to Tuesday and, if necessary Wednesday evenings after
the point of interruption at 7.00 pm.
4. The House should not sit on Fridays.
There remains the problem of tours. I know that
many colleagues are extremely concerned that the hours for them
are now so limited that constituents find it impossible to visit
the House for Member conducted tours. I think that this is something
that needs to be urgently reviewed. However, I do not think that
the solution is to revert to the old hours.
Finally, I would urge you to resist all efforts
to undo the huge amount of work that has gone into the re-structuring
of the hours. I know that feelings run high on all sides but I,
personally, would not feel able to co-operate if there was a reversion
to the old hours.
February 2004
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