Recommendation 4

In their October 2025 " Strengthening Committees' Effectiveness " report, the Standards Procedures and Public Appointments Committee commented that:
"... churn in membership does not help create a sense of collegiate working as committee members need time to get to know each other and build up expertise and understanding; and
"We also agree with the concerns expressed that larger committees present practical issues with meeting management and ensuring there are opportunities to probe more deeply into issues."
We agree with this. We also agree with their view that committees should seek to normally reflect the gender balance of the Parliament, recognising the practical barriers that mean this cannot be done on all committees all the time. The Parliamentary Bureau and party business managers should consider working to avoid allowing significant gender imbalances to persist on a committee for long periods.