A quick follow-up to the pursuit of Prescott:
Sir Paul Beresford: To ask the Leader of the House if he will take steps to establish a Select Committee with responsibility for overseeing the role of the Deputy Prime Minister. [81934]
Mr. Straw: No.
Well that’s cleared that one up. But Beresford is not to be deterred…
Sir Paul Beresford (Mole Valley): To ask the Leader of the House…if he will seek to include the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister within the remit of a select committee. (84870)
Sir Paul Beresford (Mole Valley): To ask the Leader of House, which members of Cabinet do not have their ministerial responsibilities scrutinised by a Select Committee. (84924)
If Beresford had more than two brain cells to rub together I’m sure he could work out the answer to the second question on his own - Prime Minister (partly scrutinised by the Liaison Committee), Deputy Prime Minister (not at all), Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (partly through the Regulatory Reform Committee), the Leader of the House (on the Modernisation Committee, and potentially scrutinised by a number of the domestic select committees), and the Chief Whip.
Anyway, Red Tamarin’s opinion is that Beresford is running into a dead end. He should follow the example of Angela Watkinson and ask more entertaining, press-friendly questions:
Angela Watkinson (Upminister): To ask the Deputy Prime Minister…what percentage of the staff in his private office are (a) female and (b) from ethnic minorities. (85061).
Prescott must know that this isn’t going to stop…
redtamarin[at]gmail.com
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Actually the most entertaining and enlightening question would be:
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many of his office staff are female, how many of those he has had sexual relations with, and how many of that number have been swiftly and unexpectedly promoted by the Government way above the level that their previous career pattern and job experience would normally justify?
That should do it!
matt said this on July 12th, 2006 at 12:16 am