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Employment
Energy Environment
Foreign Affairs
Home Affairs Scottish Affairs Social Services
Trade and Industry
Transport
Treasury and Civil Service
Welsh Affairs
Department of Employment Department of Energy
Department of the
Environment
Foreign and Commonwealth
Office
Home Office
Scottish Office
Department of Health and
Social Security Department of Trade
and Industry
Department of Transport
Treasury, Office of the
Minister for the Civil
Service, Board of Inland Revenue, EM Customs and Excise Welsh Office
The Committees on Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs and the Treasury and Civil Service each have power to appoint one investigative sub-committee. A joint sub-committee may be set up from time to time to consider any matter affecting two or more nationalised industries, with members drawn from the departmental Committees concerned. Matters within the responsibilities of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland will be considered by the existing Committees as necessary.
5. The general terms of reference of these Committees are as
(Annex B of this Memorandum). set out in Standing Order No. 130. The Committees age responsible for the interpretation of their
The Committees are entitled to examine own terms of reference. the expenditure, administration and policy of the principal Government Departments, and also of their "associated public bodies". The terms of the Standing Orders do not define "associated public bodies" but the then Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said in his speech on 25 June 1979 that:
"The Government also accept the Procedure Committee's view that the Committees must be able to look at the activities of some public bodies that exercise authority of their own and over which Ministers do not have the same direct authority as they have over their own Departments. test in every case will be whether there is a significant degree of ministerial responsibility for the body concerned."
The
Associated public bodies therefore include all nationalised industries, fringe bodies and other Governmental organisations within the responsibilities of the Department or Departments concerned for which Ministers are ultimately answerable. They do not, however, include bodies for which Ministers are not answerable to Parliament, even though these bodies may be in
There will no doubt be borderline receipt of Government funds. cases, but in general the existing principles of Parliamentary accountability can be applied.
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