Lord McFall of Alcluith
Main Page: Lord McFall of Alcluith (Lord Speaker - Life peer)Liaison Committee Report
Lord McFall of Alcluith Excerpts
The Senior Deputy Speaker
That the Report from the Select Committee A Common Frameworks Scrutiny Committee (4th Report, HL Paper 115) be agreed to.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith) [V]
My Lords, I beg to move that the Fourth Report of the Liaison Committee be agreed to.
As a consequence of the UK leaving the European Union, powers previously exercised at an EU level that intersect with devolved competences will flow back directly to Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. In a number of areas, the UK Government and the Scottish and Welsh Governments agree that it is necessary to maintain UK-wide approaches, or common frameworks. These frameworks will require parliamentary scrutiny and a committee should be established to begin scrutinising them as soon as possible. The preliminary documentation for the first framework has already been brought forward for scrutiny, with more expected to arrive shortly.
Our expectation is that the new committee will focus on detailed scrutiny of common frameworks and on maintaining relations with other UK legislatures in relation to this scrutiny. The duration of the work required is uncertain but is expected to persist for at least 12 months. Around 40 detailed and technically complex framework documents are expected to be submitted for parliamentary scrutiny, and some of these are likely to be handled concurrently by the new committee. We have recommended an initial appointment for the duration of the present Session, with regular review by the Liaison Committee of its work during that period.
The new committee will play an important role in giving the House the capacity for detailed focus on an important part of the post-Brexit landscape. The work undertaken will be detailed, complex and technical but will, I am sure, allow us to utilise the best qualities of the House in delivering expert scrutiny on matters of vital importance to our economy and society. I beg to move.