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CONFIDENTIAL
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+ Sho see this top submission win REGISTRY No. 74l'n. Sack hom now isiwed
2 8 MAY 1974
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PROPOSED SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
PROBLEM
1. The Minister of State wishes to recommend to the Secretary of State that he invite his colleagues in DOPC to agree to the establishment of a Select Committee "to study developments in the dependent territories, to consider representations from them and to publish formal reports including recommendations to the Government". The Minister of State would like to discuss his proposals with Miss Lestor and officials before papers are sub- mitted to the Secretary of State.
2. What advice should be given to the Minister of State?
ARGUMENT RGUMEN
3. The Select Committee on the Nationalised Industries has attracted widespread Parliamentary interest largely because it has built up for itself both a reputation for good sense and a sizeable body of expertise. It has gained the respect of the Chairmen of the nationalised industry Boards. The Committee generally scrutinises the performance of the nationalised corpora- tions. (The Expenditure Committee's Sub-Committee on Trade and Industry can only enquire into the management of the capital expenditure of the nationalsied corporations because that is the only part of their expenditure which is classed as public expenditure.) The Select Committee on the Nationalised Industries is a "watchdog" Committee and so unusual, since it is not purely a committee of enquiry as most Select Committees are. This Committee's special role reflects the constitutional relationship between the industries and Ministers: Ministers are responsible for the nationalised industries, but their affairs are not regularly debated in Parliament except when a Select Committee report on a particular industry is chosen for debate.
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