Agenda item 4 is consideration of the committee's draft annual report for the parliamentary year from 7 May 2005 to 6 May 2006. Do committee members have any comments to make on the report?
Rather than conclude the report with details about how often and for how many hours we met, we should say that all that we have done this year—like other years—is to consider legislation. We need to highlight that at the beginning of the report, because the purpose of committees is not just to consider legislation but to carry out inquiries. Paragraph 1 says:
Perhaps we should change "main" in paragraph 1 to "only". The committee must comply with a stylistic model for annual reports, so we have little flexibility, unfortunately. The Conveners Group is considering whether the form of annual reports should be changed.
I am glad that Scott Barrie made that point. I do not know where in the report we can say this, but the committee has considered only legislation and the balance has been wrong. A happy, healthy committee not only considers legislation but has the privilege of initiating its own work—the committee has undertaken good investigations in the past. Conveners are given stuff to deal with, which is hard for them, but I hope that we can say in our annual report that the committee is operating like a standing committee and has had no opportunity to conduct even tiny inquiries.
We have been working on a tiny inquiry today, which will be described in next year's annual report.
Where is the protocol that says what can go into an annual report?
I understand that a protocol was agreed between the Conveners Group and the clerks, but there is nothing in standing orders that requires us to comply with it. As the convener said, the Conveners Group is reconsidering the matter.
We have to produce an annual report and some members of the Conveners Group have asked whether annual reports serve a useful purpose.
They do not, if we are not allowed to write about the things that matter. Why can we not put in what we want?
Is the committee happy to add a line to paragraph 1 to say that the committee regrets that it has not had time to engage in the inquiry work that it might have liked to do?
Yes.
Yes, for the third year running.
Yes; the problem has not arisen just this year. Good for Scott Barrie for raising the matter.
We will amend the draft report to reflect members' concerns.
Thank you. The clerks will make those changes and circulate a draft report by e-mail for final approval.
Meeting closed at 13:20.
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