Warp speed on committee corridor
As the Two Ronnies would doubtless put it, the will have a packed programme next week - as it puts the government's Spending Review under the microscope.
On Monday, the committee will be talking to the independent experts, including a contingent from the Institute for Fiscal Studies - the pointy-heads' pointy-heads. (Incidentally IFS criticism of the coalition's housing benefit changes has annoyed Conservative backbencher Robert Halfon to the extent ).
On Tuesday, it's the TUC and the CBI; on Wednesday, Treasury officials and then the Lib Dem Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, who is the minister in charge of public spending. Then on Thursday, it's the Chancellor George Osborne, himself.
By the normally sedate standards of the committee corridor, they're operating at warp speed. (Oh dear, I've strayed into another TV metaphor...the dilithium crystals can't take much more, Cap'n Kirk.)
They may also be taking evidence about the impact of the spending cuts on particular departments, particularly the Ministry of Defence. But the key question for committee chair Andrew Tyrie is whether, on this ultra-partisan, hyper-important issue, he can shepherd his flock to a unanimous verdict on the review, without pulling its punches to the point where they become mere love taps.
In fact, that is the challenge the Spending Review poses across all the select committees. In different ways, all of them will have to examine the impact of these very deep spending cuts on their particular patch. I keep hearing how the new-look committees, with their elected chairs and elected members are keen and dedicated scrutineers of the executive, with the light of duty glowing in their eyes - apparently the new bugs on the Home Affairs Committee put down 30 amendments to their latest draft report on the coalition's immigration cap, which would have been an unheard-of impertinence in the last parliament - but this is the first big test of whether they are for real. Can they produce effective, forensic and objective assessments of the SR? Or are the issues raised by the spending squeeze so controversial that they result in a spate of majority and minority reports. And if they do, who will be the majority and who will be in the minority? Most departmental committees have five Conservative members, five Labour and one Lib Dem. And it's not inconceivable that a particular Lib Dem, on a particular committee, might side with the opposition, rather than the government, resulting in an official select committee condemnation. That would not be too devastating, since it could be portrayed as a partisan verdict made possible by a maverick Liberal....
But a condemnation of - say - the defence cuts, by a united Defence Committee would be pretty wounding. I suspect the whips will be stalking the committee corridor in the next few weeks.
I'm Mark D'Arcy and I'll be writing about what goes on in the chambers and committee rooms at Westminster.
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