2.2.4 – The ways in which Parliament interacts with the Executive
On Monday 27 October David Lammy was forced to give a Ministerial Statement updating the Commons on the mistaken release of a sex offender from HMP Chelmsford. Ministerial Statements are a key mechanism through which Parliament can hold the Executive to account, but, are often used by a Department to proactively deal with potential scrutiny.
A Ministerial Statement is a mechanism through which a Minister briefs the House of Commons on an issue within their departmental remit. Such is their importance, they take place near the start of the Commons session, after Oral Questions and Urgent Questions. Following a statement, the Minister will take questions from MPs, allowing scrutiny of the issue at question.
Importantly, Ministerial Statements are often held on problematic issues. By addressing the issue front-on, the Government can be seen to be transparent and inviting scrutiny. If they were to avoid giving a Ministerial Statement, there is a good chance an Opposition MP may be granted an Urgent Question by the Speaker, which undoubtedly has the effect of giving the impression that the Government is avoiding scrutiny. In this case, Lammy spoke for 11 minutes and took questions for 50 minutes. During his statement, he said that the release had been down to ‘human error’ and he would be launching an independent inquiry to find what had happened and what lessons could be learned from it. Often, an independent inquiry can cool down the anger about an issue and allow it to considered at a less emotionally charged point.