The Westminster Parliament is regarded by many as being among the world leaders in the quest by legislatures for cost control, value for money and the adoption of the most up-to-date financial and management techniques. It is, however, a Parliament that is run by the members for the members, and those members present a demanding clientele with escalating requirements. The course aims to demonstrate how the administration of Westminster endeavours to respond to what can be competing pressures from rising demand and rising costs.
Westminster has endured a year in which the conduct of members, arising from their claims for expenses and their financial probity, has been subjected to unparalleled media criticism and public anger. It has been a year in which the two Houses have been rocked to their foundations by their most serious parliamentary scandal in living memory. The course, which always aims to bring forward the latest thinking in parliamentary administration, will seek to put before you people who were at the eye of the storm, to show what went wrong and why, and to explain what will be done to repair the damage to members’ reputations and public confidence in the system.
Behind the media frenzy and the public reactions, however, the day-to-day task of running a parliament and providing the services demanded by members to enable them to fulfil their constitutional and constituency duties remains. Some of the most senior administrators at Westminster will explain how that job is being undertaken and report on implementation of the fundamental reorganisation introduced in 2008.