Accessing Parliament and using research effectively

1. Accessing Parliament and using research effectively Gary Hart Lynn Hobson June 2015 @UKParlOutreach

2. @UKParlOutreach Parliament’s Outreach Service • a free service from the Houses of Parliament • politically neutral • aims to increase knowledge and engagement with work and processes of Parliament

3. Session objectives By the end of this session, you will know: • The ways your research could be used at Parliament • How to present your research effectively at Parliament • What there is to find in terms of Parliamentary Resources • Who to contact in Parliament and how.

4. @UKParlOutreach The core tasks of Parliament Makes and passes laws (Legislation) Holds Government to account Enables the Government to set taxes

5. @UKParlOutreach Government (Whitehall) Parliament (Westminster) • Commons, Lords and Monarch • holds Government to account • passes laws • some MPs and some Lords, chosen by the Prime Minister • runs Government departments and public services

6. @UKParlOutreach Balancing the Brief • Library and Committee staff work for backbench and opposition MPs. • Ministers have hundreds of civil servants behind them. • Front-bench spokespeople do not serve on Committees (by convention)

7. @UKParlOutreach • How does Parliament use research? • House of Commons Select Committees • House of Lords Select Committees • Public Bill Committees • House of Commons Library • House of Lords Library • Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST)

8. Commons select committees • Departmental select committees: Examine spending, policies and administration in each Government department • Cross-departmental committees: e.g. Public Accounts or Environmental Audit • Domestic committees: concerned with internal matters e.g. administration of the House itself or allegations about the conduct of individual MPs • Liaison Committee: oversight role – made up of all 33 Chairs of select committees

9. House of Lords select committees • Examine issues rather than the work of specific departments • Investigate specialist subjects which take advantage of the experience of members of the Lords • Five main Lords select committees: • European Union Select Committee • Science and Technology Select Committee • Communications Select Committee • Constitution Select Committee • Economic Affairs Select Committees

10. @UKParlOutreach Support for Select Committee Inquiries • Clerk – procedure expert, manages committee • Second clerk – “clerk in training”, manages inquiries • 2 x Committee specialists – subject experts, manages and advises on inquiries, brief Members (suggests questions!) • Admin staff, media officer • CALL WITNESSES • APPOINT SPECIAL ADVISERS FOR INQUIRIES • RECEIVE WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS

11. Role of Select Committees • Examine Government policy proposals and deficiencies. • Examine department’s actions and administration. Monitor associated public bodies. • Scrutinise major appointments. • Scrutinise draft bills. • Examine the implementation of legislation • Select Committee Chairs were elected on cross party basis 17th June • We expect Committee members to be in place by 21 July

12. The Committee inquiry process 1. Inquiry initiation 2. Evidence gathering 3. Report preparation 4. Report publication 5. Government reply

13. Engaging with Committees • Submitting evidence • Written • Oral • Contact with staff • Informal • Specialist Adviser • formal • Work placement? • Keep up to date with committee activity – twitter, press notices, parliament.uk • Consider outputs that set out research developments and their potential policy applications

14. Public Bill Committees • Hear evidence • Consider legislation, clause by clause. • Ad hoc – no fixed membership • May not be expert • Government has a majority • Report back to the House where controversial issues may be debated again • More party political • A good point to lobby for very specific legislative changes • A word on pre-legislative scrutiny (draft bills): easier to influence policy formation

15. Evidence submission The better evidence submissions: The less good evidence submissions: give over-complicated information, give irrelevant information, do not answer the question, present information in a way incomprehensible for non-academics. • directly address the questions asked by the Committee, • explain any complicated findings in a simple but intelligent way, • tailor which bits of research they present to be relevant to the inquiry, • gives sources of further information, • only gives information relevant to the inquiry

16. Submitting research • Use the terms of reference: you need to tailor your research to the specific inquiry • Answer the questions posed in the Call for Evidence • Write for an intelligent non-specialist: be relevant and concise • State clearly who the submission is from - “Written evidence submitted by xxxxxxx” • Begin with a short summary in bullet form • No more than 3000 words (or 8 sides of A4) • Have numbered paragraphs • Any factual information you have to offer from which the committee might be able to draw conclusions, or which could be put to other witnesses for their reactions • Any recommendations for action by the Government or others which you would like the committee to consider

17. Impact of Select Committees Direct impact • Difficult to measure • 40% of recommendations to Government accepted either partially or fully. (“Selective Influence: The Policy Impact of Select Committees” - research published in 2011 by Constitution Unit at UCL) Indirect impact • Influence on policy debates • Highlighting issues which the Government might not have considered • Offering expert independent advice • Exposing wrongful acts or inconsistencies in Government policy • Causing the Government to act in anticipation of a select committee inquiry • Participation by the chair and other Committee members in conferences, think tanks, media appearances

18. Provide specialist impartial information and briefing service for MPs, Peers, their staff, committees and staff of the Houses • For all parties • Subject specialists, 8 subject areas • Produce wide range of briefing material • Available online at www.parliament.uk under research publications House of Commons and House of Lords Libraries Misconceptions

19. What is Library work used for? • Opposition Front Bench team • Hold Government to account • Backbenchers – • Scrutinising legislation • Debates (debate packs) • Media appearances • Constituents, surgeries • Specialist interests • Select Committees • Other Parliaments’ Members

21. Main ‘outputs’ • Confidential briefings for MPs; 250 a month • Publish 100+ ‘standard notes’ on internet each year • Daily ‘current awareness’ email to over 100 subscribers • Personal briefings – e.g. new Opposition spokespersons • Library Research Papers

22. Engaging with the Library • Keep in touch with individual Library Specialists – let them know about research developments • Follow the Library or on Twitter @CommonsLibrary • Research Council funded internships in the future. • Specialists can be a conduit for getting information to policy makers • Library and committees increasingly co-located – a big group of specialists

23. Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology: POSTNoteshttp://www.parliament.uk/post • Each note take 3-4 months • Interviews with around 15 experts • Examples of notes: 422 - Mental Health and the Workplace 421 - Measuring Wellbeing 420 - Advanced Manufacturing 419 - Water Resource Resilience 418 - Balancing Nature and Agriculture 417 - Energy Use Behaviour Change

24. Administration • Board – ten MPs, four Peers, four non-parliamentarians from science and technology community; and some parliamentary staff • Staff – a Director, eight Advisers and two support staff • Fellowships – ca. 30 per year

25. POST’s work must be... • Clear • Timely • Balanced • Independent • Comprehensive

26. POSTnotes

28. Events

30. All Party Parliamentary Groups • Not formally recognised as a parliamentary proceeding • Often confused with Select Committees • Can do good work and carry influence (eg food waste, treatment of asylum seekers) • Must have a mix of parties amongst membership and members of both Houses • May be funded by interest groups. This should be apparent on publications but can be absent so beware. • Register of APPGs can be found on the internet • APPGs are a useful way to identify MPs/Lords with an interest in a certain issue

31. @UKParlOutreach Where can I get information? • www.parliament.uk • http://www.parliament.uk/post • http://commonslibraryblog.com • Commons Information Office 020 7219 4272 hcinfo@parliament.uk • Lords Information Office 020 7219 3107 hlinfo@parliament.uk • Parliament’s Outreach Service 020 7219 1650 parliamentaryoutreach@parliament.uk