2 July 2020

Those present:           

• Mostaque Ahmed, Finance Director and Managing Director, Finance, Portfolio and Performance 
• Ian Ailles, Director General of the House of Commons (Chair) 
• John Benger, Clerk of the House
• Isabel Coman, Managing Director of In-House Services and Strategic Estates
• Sarah Davies, Clerk Assistant and Managing Director of Chamber & Committees 
• Mandy Eddolls, Managing Director of HR and Diversity 
• Eric Hepburn, Director of Security for Parliament 
• Tracey Jessup, Chief Information Officer and Managing Director of the Parliamentary Digital Service [items 1-3]
• Edge Watchorn, Acting Managing Director of Participation 
• Penny Young, Librarian and Managing Director of Research & Information 

In attendance:  

• Marianne Cwynarski, Head of Governance and Central Services and Secretary to the Commission 
• Rhiannon Hollis, Secretary to the Commons Executive Board 
• Clare Jennings, Director of Communications     
• William Newing, Business Change Manager
• Charlotte Simmonds, Restoration & Renewal Director, House of Commons
• Michael Torrance, Head of Secretariat, Sponsor Body [item 3]
• Katharine Williams, Governance and Compliance Manager 
• David Yass, Strategic Review lead, Sponsor Body [item 3]

Meeting

1. Updates and culture reflection

The Commons Executive Board noted the following updates:

• Catering facilities: following a decision by the Administration Committee some additional services were being reopened. Alcohol would be available in some of Members’ spaces and in the Adjournment, which was open to full passholders.

2. Northern Estate Programme

The Commons Executive Board agreed to recommend the proposals put forward in the papers to the Administration and Finance Committees as applicable and to the Commission. The Board also noted the draft communications plan for this development. A formal letter had been sent to the Sponsor Body highlighting that options for the Northern Estate were being considered.

3. R&R Strategic Review

The Commons Executive Board noted and discussed the plan for the Sponsor Body’s strategic review of the R&R project, including its terms of reference and engagement plan.

The Strategic Review Lead explained that, with the Sponsor Body having become substantive in April and the PRA and PDA in place, this was a sensible point to carry out a review of decisions made back in 2016. Since that time there had been political change and changes relating to Covid-19, and more had been learned about the building and the needs of its users. The intention was to consider the major steps in getting to the desired outcomes, focusing primarily on ‘how do we get there’, but secondarily on what the goals should be and how they could be tightened up into objectives. The review aimed purely to review decisions rather than seek to overturn them, with a steering group and challenge group in place to help. Communications had gone out to all Parliamentary staff and Members asking for feedback as part of the review process, which would be summarised and published; the Board asked for sight of the summary ahead of publication. The Board noted advice that it could be most helpful in advising on the likely appetite the customer would have for any proposals that the Sponsor Body sought to put forward, particularly relating to how Members and staff worked and used the Estate; also that it would be very important that the Sponsor Body coordinated its engagement activities with the two Houses. The Board asked whether the review would include public engagement; this would be addressed as part of the themes and goals being looked at in the review.

4. R&R governance

The Commons Executive Board noted the terms of reference of the new Informal Coordination Group for R&R and diagrams showing the governance of R&R in relation to Parliament.