Tom Brake (Carshalton and Wallington) (LD)
I beg to move,
That, in accordance with Standing Order No. 149A, the following be appointed as lay members of the Committee on Standards:
(1) Jane Burgess and Dr Arun Midha, for a period of six years; and
(2) Charmaine Burton and Sir Peter Rubin, for a period of four years.
As Members will recall, we started in 2013 with three lay members on the Committee on Standards, together with 10 elected members. Let me take this opportunity to thank the three pioneers who were appointed at that time—Sharon Darcy, Peter Jinman and Walter Radar—for their continuing dedication to the work of the Committee. Such has been their impact that in March 2015 the House agreed to the Committee’s recommendation that there should be equality of numbers, with seven elected and seven lay members. Last year, the House of Commons Commission accordingly set in train a recruitment process to select four additional members, and today’s motion is the last step in that process.
The Commission has produced a report giving much more detail of the process that was followed, but, for the record, I should emphasise that, in accordance with the Standing Order, these candidates were selected on the basis of a fair and open competition. The recruitment panel was headed by an independent chair and was assisted by a recruitment consultant.
Rather pleasingly, 380 applications were received. After longlisting, shortlisting and final interviews, the panel put forward to the Commission a package of candidates reflecting a mix of skills and experience and a diversity of background, gender, age and geographical location. The Commission was happy to endorse those recommendations, and I would like to put on record our thanks to the recruitment panel for its hard work in identifying such a strong group of candidates from the field.
Looking at the candidates themselves, I am sure the House will agree that they are not just the usual suspects and that they will bring a broad range of insights and experience to their work on the Committee. In brief, Jane Burgess is the partners’ counsellor and a main board director at John Lewis Partnership; Charmaine Burton is involved in community work and is the host of her own radio show in Birmingham; Dr Arun Midha has experience working with a number of public bodies in different sectors, primarily in Wales; and Sir Peter Rubin is the former chair of the General Medical Council and professor emeritus at the University of Nottingham. Further biographical details of all the candidates are published in the Commission’s report for the information of the House and beyond.
The House will note that the motion proposes differing lengths of office for these appointments. Lay members may be appointed for fixed terms of up to six years. The appointments are not renewable. On the advice of the recruitment panel, the Commission is recommending that the new appointments be staggered to provide for two terms of four years and two of six years, to militate against the loss of expertise and experience when lay members come to the end of their service.
I am sure other Members will join me in wishing the new lay members well in their new role. I ask the House to agree the motion for the appointments.
Question put and agreed to.