Lords Committee hears from the Cabinet Office on the effectiveness of Statutory Public Inquiries

The two witnesses giving evidence at 4pm are:

• Simon Madden, Director, Propriety and Ethics team, Cabinet Office
• Luke Hughes, Deputy Director, Propriety and Ethics team, Cabinet Office

Statutory Inquiries are generally set up to consider incidents of major public concern. They are aimed at learning lessons, determining accountability and restoring public confidence. There are currently 14 inquiries being undertaken under the Inquiries Act 2005. 

Concern is often expressed, however, about the length of time inquiries take, and the amount they cost.  Other criticisms are that there is no formal system for following up their recommendations for improvement.

Among the questions the Statutory Inquiries Committee, chaired by Lord Norton, is likely to ask are: 

• How does the Cabinet Office’s inquiries unit ensure good practice and lessons learnt are shared?
• How are inquiries sponsored by other government departments?
• What level of resourcing is needed for the inquiries unit to be effective
• When will the Cabinet Office’s guidance to inquiry chairs, which has been in draft form for 12 years, be published, and why has it taken so long?

The committee takes place in Committee Room 1 of the Palace of Westminster. This session, which is open to the public, will also be streamed live on Parliament TV.