Backbench Business Committee

The Backbench Business Committee of the British House of Commons was created on 15 June 2010 through the adoption of a new standing order.^[1] It was created soon after 2010 general election, but had been proposed during the previous Parliament by the Wright Committee on Reform of the House of Commons in its report of 12 November 2009.^[2]

Remit

The committee is responsible for determining, on behalf of backbench members (i.e., members who are not Ministers of the Crown or shadow ministers), the business before the House for approximately one day each week. This includes Thursday sittings in the parallel debating chamber, known as Westminster Hall, which are considered half days. The Standing Orders give the committee 35 days per session, of which at least 27 are taken on the floor of the House (as opposed to Westminster Hall). The one-and-one-half-hour Topical Debates, which count as quarter days, are also within the ambit of the committee.^[1]

Membership

The committee consists of a chair and seven other members to be elected at the beginning of each session. The chair, who must be an opposition member, is elected under the alternative vote method in a manner similar to other select committee chairs. The other members are selected under the single transferable vote method with the stipulation that the eight members (including the Chair) reflect a distribution of the seats made by the Speaker, which is to reflect the party composition of the House of Commons. In addition, at least two men and two women must be elected. Ministers of the Crown, Parliamentary Private Secretaries, and 'principal opposition frontbench spokespersons' are prohibited from standing for election as chair or as a member.^[1] As at June 2015, the Committee's only member is its Chair, Ian Mearns, with other members to be elected.^[3] Members in the 2014/15 session of Parliament were as follows:

	Party	Constituency
Natascha Engel MP (Chair)	Labour	North East Derbyshire
David Amess MP	Conservative	Southend West
David Anderson MP	Labour	Blaydon
Bob Blackman MP	Conservative	Harrow East
Jane Ellison MP	Conservative	Battersea
John Hemming MP	Liberal Democrats	Birmingham Yardley
Marcus Jones MP	Conservative	Nuneaton
Ian Mearns MP	Labour	Gateshead

Source: Backbench Business Committee

Review

At same time it created the committee, the House resolved to review the work of the committee at the beginning of the 2011/12 session. The Leader of the House of Commons, Sir George Young, stated that the purpose of the review was to help reach the next phase of implementing the Wright Committee report: setting up a committee to manage substantially all House business.^[4]

References

1 2 3 House of Commons Votes and Proceedings, 15 June 2010
↑ "The House of Commons - Reform of the House of Commons Committee". Parliament.uk. Retrieved 2010-06-06.
↑ "Winning candidates for select committee Chairs announced". UK Parliament. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
↑ House of Commons Debates 15 June 2010 v511 c782

Current Parliamentary Committees of the United Kingdom

Commons

Departmental	Business, Innovation and Skills Communities and Local Government Culture, Media and Sport Defence Education Energy and Climate Change Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Foreign Affairs Health Home Affairs International Development Justice Northern Ireland Affairs Political and Constitutional Reform Science and Technology Scottish Affairs Transport Treasury Welsh Affairs Work and Pensions

Topical	Arms Export Controls Environmental Audit European Scrutiny Public Accounts Public Administration Regulatory Reform Statutory Instruments Women and Equalities

General	Panel of Chairs Public bill committee Delegated Legislation Committee European Committees Northern Ireland Grand Committee Regional Affairs Committee Scottish Grand Committee Welsh Grand Committee English Grand Committee

Internal	Administration Finance and Services Backbench Business Liaison Members' Expenses Procedure Selection Standards and Privileges Works of Art

Lords

Topical	Communications Constitution Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Economic Affairs European Union Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Science and Technology

Private business	Hybrid Instruments Standing Orders Internal: House Liaison Committee Privileges and Conduct Procedure Selection

Domestic	Administration and Works Information Refreshment Works of Art

Joint

Select	Consolidation, &c., Bills Joint Committee on Draft Investigatory Powers Bill Joint Committee on Draft Protection of Charities Bill Human Rights National Security Strategy Joint Committee on Palace of Westminster Statutory Instruments

Statutory

Commons	House of Commons Commission Administration Estimate Audit Members Estimate Members Estimate Audit Public Accounts Commission Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority

Joint	Ecclesiastical Committee Intelligence and Security

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