Foreign Affairs Select Committee facts for kids
The Foreign Affairs Select Committee is a special group of politicians from the British Parliament. Their main job is to check on the work of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which is the part of the government that deals with other countries. They look at how money is spent, how things are managed, and what policies are being followed in foreign affairs.
What the Committee Does
The Foreign Affairs Committee carries out many investigations, called "inquiries." They publish reports about what they find. One important report they make every year is about human rights around the world.
During an inquiry into the decision to go into Iraq in 2003, a person named David Kelly spoke to the committee. This was a very well-known event at the time.
More recently, from 2015 to 2016, the committee looked closely at Britain's involvement in the Libyan Civil War. They found that the danger to people in Libya was perhaps made to seem bigger than it was at first. They also said that the government didn't fully understand that many rebel groups had strong religious beliefs. This was seen as a failure in getting good information.
The committee concluded that what started as a plan to protect people in Libya turned into a plan to change the country's government. However, they found that this new plan didn't include enough support for a new government to take over properly. This led to big problems in Libya, including the growth of groups like ISIL in North Africa. The report said that the former Prime Minister, David Cameron, was ultimately responsible for these problems in British policy.
Who is on the Committee?
As of January 2023, here are the members of the Foreign Affairs Committee:
| Member | Party | Constituency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alicia Kearns (Chair) | Conservative | Rutland and Melton | |
| Saqib Bhatti | Conservative | Meriden | |
| Chris Bryant | Labour | Rhondda | |
| Liam Byrne | Labour | Birmingham, Hodge Hill | |
| Neil Coyle | Labour | Bermondsey and Old Southwark | |
| Drew Hendry | Scottish National Party | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | |
| Andrew Rosindell | Conservative | Romford | |
| Bob Seely | Conservative | Isle of Wight | |
| Henry Smith | Conservative | Crawley | |
| Royston Smith | Conservative | Southampton Itchen | |
| Graham Stringer | Labour | Blackley and Broughton | |
Chairs of the Committee
Here are the people who have led the Foreign Affairs Committee over the years:
| Chair | Party | Constituency | Term of office | Electors | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony Kershaw | Conservative | Stroud | 3 May 1979 | 1 January 1987 | Committee | |
| David Howell | Conservative | Guildford | 1 January 1987 | 21 March 1997 | ||
| Donald Anderson | Labour | Swansea East | 16 July 1997 | 12 July 2005 | ||
| Mike Gapes | Labour | Ilford South | 18 July 2005 | 12 April 2010 | ||
| Richard Ottaway | Conservative | Croydon South | 10 June 2010 | 30 March 2015 | Commons | |
| Crispin Blunt | Conservative | Reigate | 18 June 2015 | 3 May 2017 | ||
| Tom Tugendhat | Conservative | Tonbridge and Malling | 12 July 2017 | 6 September 2022 | ||
| Alicia Kearns | Conservative | Rutland and Melton | 12 October 2022 | Incumbent | ||
See also
- Parliamentary Committees of the United Kingdom
