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The world wars of the 20th century were something of a golden age for select committee scrutiny in the House of Commons. Between 1917 and 1920, the House’s Committee on National Expenditure published reports on government spending, identifying a range of economies.  A committee with a similar remit was appointed between 1939 and 1945. The committees were highly active and could be influential in the wider political world, often doing much more than simply seeking economies. They made sometimes radical recommendations on the administration and management of departments and, on occasion, touched on matters of civil and military policy. 

The difference between the work of these committees and their often unambitious peacetime equivalents of the early 20th century was stark.  This seminar will explore why the Commons took its scrutiny role so seriously in wartime and why it appeared to lose interest soon after peace was restored.

Philip Aylett is a former clerk in the House of Commons, where he worked for a wide range of select committees. In 2016 he received a PhD from Queen Mary University of London for his thesis on the history of House of Commons select committees between 1960 and 1990, and he has published a number of articles on that subject


All welcome- this seminar is free to attend, but advance booking is required.