The House Rules?

Andrew Blick (London, Houses of Parliament): The Constitution Unit has just published a major new report, 'The House Rules?' (opens pdf), with proposals that urgently need to be taken on as part of the new constitutional reform agenda. The 'Governance of Britain' Green Paper is strong on the transfer of powers from the executive to Parliament: but silent on how Parliament will dispose of its new responsibilties effectively. The current government domination of the legislature means that while the approval of MPs may in future be required for such acts as treaty ratification and war-making, Parliament's role as a rubber-stamp could in practice continue. The executive will have obtained legitimacy for its actions without proper accountability. Here is where the Constitution Unit proposals come in: they set out means by which the House could gain more control over its own time, agenda, what it does and how it goes about it. But there is a clear barrier to this outcome being achieved: the cooperation of the executive is required in order for its own dominance to be reduced.