Following the election of the majority of Select Committee chairs in September of this year, and this month of the full committee memberships, announcements on their new inquiries have come thick and fast. Here is a quick snapshot of what has been announced just this week alone:

The Public Accounts Select Committee has announced several important inquiries aimed at assessing critical issues affecting public services and infrastructure in the UK.

The inquiry into “Support for children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN)” will examine the rising demand for support services for these children and young adults. Since 2015, the number of individuals with Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plans has surged by 140%, prompting a closer look at whether the Department for Education’s budget allocations for 2024-25 are sufficient to meet this increasing demand.

To address educational disparities, the Committee’s inquiry into “Improving educational outcomes for disadvantaged children” will examine strategies aimed at closing the attainment gap. Disadvantaged children, who make up more than a quarter of students in state schools, often perform below their peers, impacting their future opportunities. This inquiry will evaluate the effectiveness of ongoing efforts to narrow this gap.

The committee has also launched an inquiry into “NHS financial sustainability” to address the NHS’s significant budgetary challenges. With substantial pressures on its finances, this inquiry will evaluate how effective recent funding adjustments have been and consider strategies to prevent further deficits while ensuring high-quality healthcare services.

Another inquiry, “Prison state capacity”, will focus on the government’s plans to alleviate overcrowding in prisons. As the prison population grows, the Committee will review plans to expand capacity through new facilities and enhancements to existing infrastructure to assess their potential for resolving these issues.

In the area of environmental policy, the “Carbon capture, usage and storage” inquiry will review the government’s progress in developing carbon technology, aiming to meet targets in the Net Zero Strategy to capture 20-30 million tonnes of CO₂ annually by 2030. The Committee will evaluate efforts to establish four operational carbon capture clusters as part of this initiative.

The committee has also announced an inquiry into the “Use of AI in government”, reflecting the government’s ambition to lead in the safe and ethical deployment of artificial intelligence within the public sector. With cross-government work on an AI adoption strategy already underway since 2023, the inquiry will review progress, including insights from a National Audit Office (NAO) report indicating that 70% of surveyed government bodies are piloting or planning to use AI.

We bring first-hand experience of working in the front-line of government, political parties and international organisations and can work with you in preparing for the challenges and opportunities Select Committee engagement presents.

Outside of the Public Accounts Committee, several other committees have each launched their first inquiries. The most prominent is undoubtedly the Treasury Committee’s inquiry into the recently released Autumn 2024 Budget, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves already set to give oral evidence this coming Wednesday. Elsewhere, the Business and Trade Committee has opened its first call for evidence into the government’s flagship new Employment Rights Bill.

Meanwhile, the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee has launched its first inquiry into Children in Temporary Accommodation and the Women and Equalities Committee into Tackling non-consensual intimate image abuse, which will scrutinise, amongst other things, the nascent Online Safety Act. Finally, the Culture, Media and Sport Committee is continuing where it left off in the last parliament, with the British film and high-end television 2 inquiry, which will examine the challenges facing the industry.

We expect there to be a regular drumbeat of announcements to follow in the coming weeks and new inquires generating hearings in due course. If you or your business are looking to navigate engaging with Select Committees, be it evidence submission or questioning, DRD’s team can assist with each stage of preparation. Our team is drawn from across the political spectrum and the British civil service. We bring first-hand experience of working in the front-line of government, political parties and international organisations and can work with you in preparing for the challenges and opportunities Select Committee engagement presents.