ABSTRACT

Between 2017 and 2020 a comprehensive review of the framework of investigatory scrutiny committees in the House of Lords was undertaken. This process led to a far-reaching set of recommendations and reforms. Although carefully couched in the language of evolutionary change, this article argues that these reforms possess a transformational dynamic that is difficult to deny. The challenge, however, is likely to emerge from the existence of a largely hidden disjuncture between the accountability ambitions embedded within this reform agenda and the institutional, constitutional and political matrixes within which the ‘new’ committee system in the Lords is expected to operate. A three-dimensional lens emphasising inter-, intra-, and extra-institutional dimensions is utilised to expose and dissect the existence of potential disjuncture and, through this, offers a ‘review of the review’ informed by broader literatures on legislative organisation and policy analysis that will be of interest to both practitioners and scholars.

摘要

2017 年至 2020 年间，对上议院调查审查委员会的框架进行了全面审查。这一过程产生了一系列影响深远的建议和改革。尽管本文用进化变革的语言仔细地表述，但它认为这些改革具有难以否认的变革动力。然而，挑战很可能来自于改革议程中的问责野心与上议院“新”委员会制度预期运作的制度、宪法和政治矩阵之间存在很大程度上隐藏的脱节。利用强调机构间、机构内和机构外维度的三维镜头来揭露和剖析潜在分裂的存在，并通过这种方式，