Helen Mountfield QC gave evidence to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee last week in relation to the current Election Bill that is being passed through Parliament. Helen drew attention to the absence of cross-party consultation before the Election Bill was introduced stating that:
“…this is very constitutionally and democratically significant legislation and it is being put through without a White Paper … I think it is inexplicable that this is being rushed through without the opportunity for proper debate or an attempt to build cross-party consensus. That feeds a perception—and it may be a wrong perception; this may be a sticking plaster solution to some problems and not others—that it is being done for narrow and short-sighted reasons of perceived political advantage.”
The committee considers matters relating to the quality and standards of administration provided by civil service departments and to constitutional affairs.