SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE CONSTITUTION INQUIRY INTO THE CONSTITUTIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF COALITION GOVERNMENT Oral and written evidence Contents Rt Hon. Lord Adonis—Oral Evidence (QQ 88-99) .................................................................. 3 Dr Stephen Barber, London South Bank University—Written evidence ............................... 16 Dr Andrew Blick, King’s College London—Written evidence ............................................... 29 Rt Hon. Paul Burstow MP, Rt Hon. Cheryl Gillan MP and Tim Loughton MP—Oral Evidence (QQ 58-73) .............................................................................................................................. 40 Rt Hon. Lord Butler of Brockwell, KG, GCB, CVO and Lord O’Donnell, GCB—Oral Evidence (QQ 111-120) ........................................................................................................... 58 Lord Donoughue and Professor Lord Norton of Louth—Oral Evidence (QQ 1-13) ........... 70 Rt Hon. Lord Falconer of Thoroton and Rt Hon. Baroness Royall of Blaisdon—Oral Evidence (QQ 121-131) ........................................................................................................... 86 Dr Ruth Fox, Hansard Society—Written evidence .............................................................. 100 Dr Ruth Fox, Professor Robert Hazell and Mr Barry Winetrobe—Oral Evidence (QQ 14-29) ................................................................................................................................................ 105 Rt Hon. Cheryl Gillan MP, Rt Hon. Paul Burstow MP and Tim Loughton MP—Oral Evidence (QQ 58-73) ............................................................................................................................ 125 Professor Robert Hazell, Constitution Unit, UCL—Written evidence ................................ 126 Professor Robert Hazell, Dr Ruth Fox and Mr Barry Winetrobe—Oral Evidence (QQ 14-29) ................................................................................................................................................ 134 Professor Robert Hazell, Constitution Unit, UCL—Supplementary written evidence ........ 135 Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones—Written evidence .............................................................................. 137 Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones, Rt Hon. Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale, Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan and Lord Stephen—Oral Evidence (QQ 100-110)................................................................ 143 Rt Hon. David Laws MP—Oral Evidence (QQ 44-57).......................................................... 156 Rt Hon. Oliver Letwin MP—Oral Evidence (QQ 132-140).................................................. 171 Rt Hon. Oliver Letwin MP, Minister for Government, Cabinet Office—Supplementary written evidence..................................................................................................................... 182 Tim Loughton MP, Rt Hon. Paul Burstow MP and Rt Hon. Cheryl Gillan MP—Oral Evidence (QQ 58-73) ............................................................................................................................ 184 Dr Felicity Matthews, The University of Sheffield—Written evidence................................. 185 Rt Hon. Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale, Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones, Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan and Lord Stephen—Oral Evidence (QQ 100-110)................................................................ 188 Rt Hon. Lord Adonis—Oral Evidence (QQ 88-99) Lord Morgan and Lord Steel of Aikwood—Oral Evidence (QQ 30-43) .............................. 189 Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan—Written evidence ......................................................................... 206 Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan, Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones, Rt Hon. Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale, and Lord Stephen—Oral Evidence (QQ 100-110)................................................................ 208 Professor Lord Norton of Louth and Lord Donoughue—Oral Evidence (QQ 1-13) ......... 209 Lord O’Donnell, GCB and Rt Hon. Lord Butler of Brockwell, KG, GCB, CVO—Oral Evidence (QQ 111-120) ......................................................................................................... 210 Rt Hon. Peter Riddell, CBE, Institute for Government—Written evidence ........................ 211 Rt Hon. Baroness Royall of Blaisdon and Rt Hon. Lord Falconer of Thoroton—Oral Evidence (QQ 121-131) ......................................................................................................... 214 Rt Hon. Lord Shutt of Greetland, OBE and Rt Hon. Lord Strathclyde, CH—Oral Evidence (QQ 74-87) ............................................................................................................................ 215 Lord Steel of Aikwood and Lord Morgan—Oral Evidence (QQ 30-43) .............................. 228 Lord Stephen, Mr Ieuan Wyn Jones, Rt Hon. Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale and Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan —Oral Evidence (QQ 100-110)................................................................... 229 Rt Hon. Lord Strathclyde, CH and Rt Hon. Lord Shutt of Greetland, OBE—Oral Evidence (QQ 74-87) ............................................................................................................................ 230 Mr Barry Winetrobe, Dr Ruth Fox and Professor Robert Hazell—Oral Evidence (QQ 14-29) ................................................................................................................................................ 231 Mr Barry Winetrobe, Honorary Research Associate, Constitution Unit, UCL— Supplementary written evidence............................................................................................ 232 2 of 233 Rt Hon. Lord Adonis—Oral Evidence (QQ 88-99) Rt Hon. Lord Adonis—Oral Evidence (QQ 88-99) Evidence Session No. 6 Heard in Public Questions 74 - 99 WEDNESDAY 27 NOVEMBER 2013 Members present Baroness Jay of Paddington (chairman) Lord Crickhowell Lord Cullen of Whitekirk Baroness Falkner of Margravine Lord Hart of Chilton Lord Irvine of Lairg Lord Lang of Monkton Lord Lester of Herne Hill Lord Lexden Lord Powell of Bayswater Baroness Wheatcroft ________________ Examination of Witnesses Examination of Witness Rt Hon. Lord Adonis, member of Labour negotiation team after 2010 general election Q88 The Chairman: Thank you very much for arriving so promptly and for enabling us to proceed with a rather similar conversation, although we want to devote some time, if we can, to what you wrote about the formation of the coalition, as well as general points about its continuation and operation. We heard in the last session, and you were here for some of it, quite a lot of support for the idea of a coalition being a perfectly meaningful way of conducting government. You wrote in your book rather firmly, “As a necessity they can work … but for the two major parties, they are the product of electoral and policy failure”. Lord Adonis: I obviously agree with what I wrote. The Chairman: I wonder if you could expand on it. Lord Adonis: My view is pretty much in agreement with what I heard Lord Strathclyde say. For the two major parties, obviously their objective should be to win an election, in terms of winning the majority of seats. My view is that, having observed this coalition and experienced government myself including, taking up Lord Lester’s point, the fact that all parties are themselves to some extent coalitions and have to interact with other parties, it is better to have the clarity of a single-party government. Certainly the two major parties should make that their objective. 3 of 233 Rt Hon. Lord Adonis—Oral Evidence (QQ 88-99) However, what we have demonstrated in the past three and a half years is that it is perfectly possible to make a coalition work. Although that might seem a strange thing to say, given our history, in two senses there were big question marks. First, outside wartime we had not had a coalition since, being realistic about it, 1932. The 1930s are slightly debatable— whether you count it as a coalition going right through to 1939—but there was a meaningful coalition in 1931–32. Thereafter, it was essentially one-party government. We had not had a coalition outside wartime, so there was a question mark as to whether we could make it work effectively. There was also the precedent—and as somebody famously said, the only constitution that the English have is precedent—that, where elections do not yield a majority, minority governments are formed. That was the precedent of 1974, 1929 and 1923–24. There was a general expectation—an expectation I held—that if the election did not lead to a one-party majority, a minority government would be formed. It is clear now, on the basis of the past three and a half years, that we now have another precedent, which is a coalition that has functioned as a Government effectively for three and a half years. It looks as if it may do so through to the 2015 election. That, too, will be a precedent. I am struck by the fact that, alongside this coalition over the past three and a half years, there has been a certain amount of looking back on periods of single-party government, including that marvellous play at the National Theatre, This House. I am young enough not to have been around in the mid-1970s. Some members of the committee, including you, Lord Chairman, have personal memories of this time in government, not least because of your father leading the Government, which is the subject of the play. It is not clear to me that it is advantageous to have a minority government,