Report

Delivering House of Commons reform

This report from UK think tank The Constitution Unit explores different institutional vehicles for developing and delivering proposals for House of Commons reform.

Recent years have seen many proposals for reforming the internal procedures of the House of Commons, against a backdrop of clear public dissatisfaction with parliament. Less attention has been given to the question of how such reforms might be developed and delivered in practice.

This new Constitution Unit report therefore provides an evidence-based assessment of four different approaches to developing and delivering proposals for House of Commons reform: government initiative, and three different kinds of select committee exemplified by the Procedure Committee, the 2009–10 ‘Wright Committee’ and the 1997–2010 Modernisation Committee.

By comparing how these approaches have worked in the past, the report aims to help current politicians better understand the potential mechanisms through which they could pursue an agenda of Commons reform in the next parliament.