Select Committees

A complete list of Select Committee membership and a Factsheet (P2) on the work of Select Committees is available on request from the House of Commons Information Office. The list and Factsheet are also on the Parliament website at:

http://www.parliament.uk/factsheets

An index to the Select Committee home pages together with links to further pages containing information about their work and publications is on the Parliament website at: http://www.parliament.uk/commons/selcom/cmsel.htm

Select Committee Meetings
7 - 10 February 2005

Monday 7 February

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Subject: The European Union's trade agreements with African, Caribbean and Pacific countries
Witness: Rt Hon Peter Mandelson, Commissioner for Trade, European Commission

EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Subject: Teaching Children to Read
Witnesses: Sue Lloyd, Co-author, Jolly Phonics and Professor Rhona Johnston, University of Hull; The National Literacy Trust and the Early Childhood Forum

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS AND OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: HOUSING, PLANNING, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS
Subject: Electoral Registration
Witnesses: Rt Hon Nick Raynsford MP, Minister of State for Local and Regional Government and Fire, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, and Mr Christopher Leslie MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Subject: Strategic Science Provision in English Universities
Witnesses: Danielle Miles, Exeter University; Ian Hutton, University of East Anglia; Amy Huntington, Newcastle University, and Stephen Rowley, Aston University; Bahram Bekhradnia, Director, Higher Education and Policy Institute; Sir Howard Newby and Mr John Rushforth, Higher Education Funding Council for England

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
Subject: The Accounts of the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster
Witnesses: Mr Bertie Ross, Secretary and Keeper of the Records, Mr Keith Willis, Head of Finance, Duchy of Cornwall; Mr Paul Clarke, Chief Executive and Clerk of the Council, and Mr Chris Adcock, Chief Finance Officer, Duchy of Lancaster

Tuesday 8 February

LIAISON
Witness: Rt Hon Tony Blair MP, Prime Minister

OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: HOUSING, PLANNING, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS URBAN AFFAIRS SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Empty Homes and Low-demand Pathfinders
Witnesses: Pathfinder Chairs; SAVE Britain's Heritage; Merseyside Civic Society and The Whitefield Community Action Group; Knowsley Council and Bolton Council; Gateway, the Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder for Kingston upon Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire and RENEW North Staffordshire

TREASURY
Subject: China and the World Economy
Witnesses: Dr Gerard Lyons, Standard Chartered Bank; Mr Peter Nightingale, China-Britain Business Council; Mr Ray Barrell, National Institute of Economic and Social Research, and Dr Linda Yueh

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Subject: Arts Development: Theatre
Witnesses: Donmar Warehouse, The Almeida; The Old Vic, Royal Court; Ambassador Theatre Group, Clear Channel Entertainment, Really Useful Group and Delfont Makintosh Theatres Ltd.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Subject: Prison Education
Witnesses: Inmates; Heads of Learning and Skills, and Education Managers; Prison Education Tutors and Instructors and Prison Officers Association

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS: PROGRESS ON PESTICIDES SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Progress on Pesticides
Witnesses: Friends of the Earth, and Pesticides Action Network UK; Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and Soil Association; Environment Agency

ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT
Subject: The international challenge of climate change: UK Leadership in the G8 and the EU
Witness: Bill Rammell MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office

EUROPEAN SCRUTINY
Subject: EU's Constitutional Treaty
Witness: Rt Hon Jack Straw MP, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

HOME AFFAIRS
Subject: Terrorism and other Home Office Issues
Witness: Rt Hon Charles Clarke MP, Secretary of State for the Home Department

Wednesday 9 February

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS
Subject: Legal Aid: asylum appeals
Witnesses: JUSTICE and Refugee Legal Centre; Bar Council; Law Society and Immigration Law Practitioners' Association

EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Subject: Every Child Matters
Witness: Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MBE MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, Department for Education and Skills

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Subject: Forensic Science
Witness: Caroline Flint MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office

WORK AND PENSIONS
Subject: Service Delivery to Minority Ethnic Customers
Witness: Jane Kennedy MP, Minister for Work, Department for Work and Pensions

DEFENCE
Subject: Iraq
Witnesses: Mr Jim Drummond, former Director, Pauline Hays, Senior Programme Manager, Iraq Directorate; Mr Rodney Matthews, former Head of Office, Basra, Department for International Development

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Subjects: (i) Darfur, Sudan: Crisis, Response and Lessons (ii) Responses to the Asian Tsunami Earthquake disaster
Witness: Mr Jan Egeland, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, United Nations

TREASURY SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Performance Targets and Monitoring
Witness: Rt Hon Paul Boateng MP, Chief Secretary, HM Treasury

WELSH AFFAIRS
Subject: Police Service, Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour in Wales
Witnesses: Hazel Blears MP, Minister of State for Crime Reduction, Policing, and Community Safety, Home Office, and officials from the Home Office and Welsh Assembly Government

TRANSPORT
Subject: Search and Rescue
Witnesses: Chief Fire Officers' Association; UK Lowland Search and Rescue Institute and Mountain Rescue England & Wales; National Coastwatch Institution

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS
Subject: The Work of Defra
Witness: Rt Hon Margaret Beckett MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

DEFENCE
Subject: Iraq
Witness: Rt Hon Adam Ingram MP, Minister of State, Major General Nick Houghton CBE, Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Operations), Dr Roger Hutton, Director, Joint Commitments Policy, Ministry of Defence

ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT
Subject: Pre-Budget 2004: The Road Ahead
Witness: John Healey MP, Economic Secretary, HM Treasury

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
Subject: Home Office: Reducing Vehicle Crime
Witnesses: Mr Leigh Lewis CB, Permanent Secretary for Crime Policing, Counter Terrorism and Delivery, Home Office, and Mr Clive Bennett, Chief Executive, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)

Joint Committee

HUMAN RIGHTS
Subject: The Government's response to the House of Lords' Belmarsh Judgment
Witness: Rt Hon Charles Clarke MP, Secretary of State for the Home
Department

Thursday 10 February

TREASURY COMMITTEE
Subject: Cash Machine Charges
Witnesses: Nationwide; Post Office Ltd; Mr Stephen Timms MP, Economic Secretary, HM Treasury

HOME AFFAIRS
Subject: Terrorism and Community Relations
Witnesses: Darra Singh, Chief Executive, Luton Borough Council; Zafar Khan, Chairman, Luton Council of Faiths; Chief Superintendent Ivor Twydell, Bedfordshire Police; Dr Nazia Khanum, Chair, Luton Multicultural Women's Coalition and Tahir Khan, Advisor, Bangladesh Youth League (Luton)

HEALTH
Subject: New Developments in HIV/AIDS and Sexual Health Policy
Witness: Melanie Johnson MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health, and Officials and Department for Education and Skills Officials

Forthcoming Select Committee Meetings
21 - 24 February 2005

Monday 21 February

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

4.30 p.m.

16

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS: PROGRESS ON PESTICIDES SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Progress on Pesticides
Witnesses: Professor Barry Dent, Chairman of the Voluntary Initiative Steering Group; Professor David Coggon, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Pesticides, and Professor David Forman, Epidemiologist on the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (at approximately 5.15 p.m.)

3.30 p.m.

The Grimond Room
Portcullis House

Tuesday 22 February

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Subject: Arts Development : Theatre
Witnesses: tbc

9.45 a.m.

Birmingham Rep Theatre,
Broad St
Centenary Sq
Birmingham

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

9.30 a.m.

The Grimond Room,
Portcullis House

TREASURY
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

9.30 a.m.

The Wilson Room,
Portcullis House

OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: HOUSING, PLANNING, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS
Subject: Local Government Consultations
Witnesses: tbc

9.15 a.m.

15

TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Subject: Fuel Prices
Witnesses: tbc

9.15 a.m.

The Boothroyd Room,
Portcullis House

SCOTTISH AFFAIRS
Subject: Meeting Scotland's Future Energy Needs
Witness: Professor James Lovelock

2.15 p.m.

17

HOME AFFAIRS
Subject: Anti-Social Behaviour
Witnesses: Association of Directors of Social Services, Barnado's and Youth Justice Board; Housing Corporation, National Landlords Association and Social Landlords Crime and Nuisance Group (at approximately 3.30 p.m.)

2.30 p.m.

The Thatcher Room,
Portcullis House

TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

2.15 p.m.

16

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Subject: Darfur, Sudan: Crisis, response and lessons
Witnesses: tbc

2.30 p.m.

6

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMISSION
Subjects: (i) The National Audit Office's Estimate for 2005-06 (ii) The Northern Ireland Audit Office's Estimate for 2005-06
Witnesses: (i) Sir John Bourn KCB, Comptroller and Auditor General, Mr Tim Burr, Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General, and Mr Michael Whitehouse, Assistant Auditor General (ii) Mr John Dowdall CB, Comptroller and Auditor General for Northern Ireland, and Mr Ciaran Moore, Assistant Auditor General
Secretary: Mr DOIG

4.15 p.m.

8

FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

9.00 a.m.

The Thatcher Room,
Portcullis House

Wednesday 23 February

EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

9.30 a.m.

The Wilson Room,
Portcullis House

TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

9.15 a.m.

The Thatcher Room,
Portcullis House

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS
Subject: Climate Change: Looking Forward
Witnesses: Energy Saving Trust; Local Government Association (at approximately 3.45 p.m.); Rt Hon Stephen Byers MP, Co-chair of the International Climate Change Taskforce (at approximately 4.30 p.m.)

3.00 p.m.

The Wilson Room,
Portcullis House

TRANSPORT
Subject: The Future of Light Rail and Modern Trams in Britain
Witness: National Audit Office

2.45 p.m.

8

TREASURY SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: tbc
Witness: tbc

2.30 p.m.

17

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
Subject: tbc
Witnesses: tbc

3.30 p.m.

16

PROCEDURE
Subject: Sub Judice Rule of the House of Commons
Witness: Rt Hon Lord Nicholls of Birkenhead

4.30 p.m.

21

NORTHERN IRELAND AFFAIRS SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Air Transport Services in Northern Ireland
Witnesses: Department for Transport Officials

5.10 p.m.

The Thatcher Room,
Portcullis House

HEALTH
Subject: Public Health White Paper
Witnesses: Rt Hon Dr John Reid MP, Secretary of State for Health, Melanie Johnson MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Minister for Public Health) Department of Health

2.00 p.m.

The Grimond Room,
Portcullis House

EUROPEAN SCRUTINY
Subject: Health Care and Long-Term Care
Witness: Rt Hon John Hutton MP, Minister of State for Health, Department of Health

2.30 p.m.

19

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Subject: (i) Responses to the Asian tsunami earthquake disaster
(ii) Darfur, Sudan: Crisis, response and lessons
Witness: Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Secretary of State for International Development

2.30 p.m.

6

Thursday 24 February

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
Subject: Civil Service Effectiveness
Witnesses: Mr Jonathan Baume, General Secretary of First Division Association, Mr Charles Cochrane OBE, Secretary of the Council of Civil Service Unions, Mr Paul Noon, General Secretary of Prospect and Mr Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union

9.45 a.m.

The Grimond Room,
Portcullis House

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS: PROGRESS ON PESTICIDES SUB-COMMITTEE
Subject: Progress on Pesticides
Witnesses: Rt Hon Alun Michael MP, Minister of State for Rural Affairs and Local Environmental Quality, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and HM Treasury

12.30 p.m.

The Wilson Room,
Portcullis House

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Subject: The future of EU Development Policy
Witness: Mr Louis Michel, European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid

9.30 a.m.

6

[The decision of a Committee to sit in public may be rescinded without notice]

Recorded information about forthcoming select and standing committee meetings over the next two sitting days is available on: [Tel 020 7219 2033]. Please note: The decision of a Committee to sit in public may be rescinded, and the place altered without notice and Committees which sit at short notice may not be included in this list. The list is correct as at press (12 noon Friday); For confirmation see Select Committee home pages on the Internet (www.parliament.uk) or telephone the Committee Office general enquiry lines: Tel 020 7219 3267/4300