The Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon , has today written to
the Leader of the House, Rt Hon and the Clerk of
the House of Commons, Dr John Benger, to ensure Members can
continue to hold the Government to account during the Coronavirus
crisis.
The letters and further information are available on the
Speaker’s website here.
Sir Lindsay said that Parliament should be able to operate
“virtually” if the UK “is still in the grip of the coronavirus
crisis” at the time the House is due to return on 21 April.
MPs should still be able to take part in Prime Minister’s
questions, oral questions to government departments, to ask
urgent questions and to hear statements being made – especially
if it is “not appropriate” for them to be present in the House of
Commons, he said.
He argued that a trial of virtual Select Committee hearings had
already been successful – and he has now asked officials “to
investigate how they would apply similar technology” for use in
the Chamber.
He also urged the Leader to indicate “as early as feasibly
possible” if the House will return after its longer Easter recess
on 21 April – or whether it will be extended further.
Background information
Since the House rose last week, three Select Committee hearings
have taken place using videoconferencing to ensure MPs can
scrutinise policies relating to Covid-19.
A great deal of work is ongoing to ensure the House Service is
able to support Members carry out their work when the House
returns from recess.
Ongoing scrutiny of Government: the work of select committees
Following the decision made by the House on Tuesday
24th March, Select Committee members have been
authorised to participate in proceedings through email,
conference calls, and digital conferencing.
While this is innovative territory, Committees have already
started holding virtual sessions using videoconferencing
software. This past week the Health and Social Care, Treasury and
DCMS Committees have already held online evidence sessions, and
other Committees such as the Petitions Committee have held
informal evidence sessions remotely using videoconferencing
technology.
There are currently limits to the number of sessions that
can be held each week but, as keyworkers, House of Commons staff
continue to work hard with Parliamentary Digital Service staff to
ensure that capacity to hold these virtual sessions increases in
the coming weeks and provides an enduring solution for the
duration of the current health emergency.
Beyond virtual evidence sessions, Committees have continued
to scrutinise and hold the Government to account through
correspondence and communication with Government Ministers,
particularly on the subject of the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak.
Some Committees are also continuing their work through holding
private meetings, and publishing notes from these meetings
after.
Supporting MPs and their staff to continue their work
away from the office
Parliamentary Digital Service have arranged for the Skype
for Business app on iOS (Apple) products and Android to be
downloaded onto parliamentary devices in phases from 26 March,
the app will also be available for registered ‘bring your own
device’ tablets and mobile phones. This will enable Members and
staff to use Skype for Business on mobile devices and provides
greater flexibility on call answering and forwarding - and video
conferencing - and may be helpful if broadband connections are
limited or you are away from your computer.
In addition, all parliamentary users can now download the
full version of Skype for Business from Parliament’s Office 365
site. This allows users to use Skype even if they do not have
parliamentary computers.
All daily business papers and documents relevant to
business in the Chamber (including tagged Select Committee
reports) are available from the House Papers app, and the Vote
Office also provides an email alert with links to publications it
has received each day. The app is available from the Google Play
and Apple app stores.
Work of the Procedure Committee in recommending
changes to business
The Procedure Committee have been working and liaising with
the Clerk of the House, alongside the Speaker and the individual
parties to determine appropriate and responsible ways for the
House to continue its scrutiny of Government in these
unprecedented times.
The Committee’s work culminated in a motion approved
by the House last Tuesday
24th March. The motion empowered Committees to
undertake necessary remote working through electronic means
approved by the Speaker.
The Procedure Committee and Administration Committee
released a joint statement on the temporary measures introduced
on Tuesday 31st March. You can read the full
statement on the Procedure Committee
website. The Committee will continue
to review the situation and advise on the best way to ensure the
vital work of the House continues.
