ABSTRACT
For most of those interested in reforming the House of Commons in the sense of redressing the balance between the increasing power of the executive and the growing impotence of backbenchers, select committees sometimes called "specialist" committees have always been the most hopeful device. The House had steadily lost influence over the executive because of the increasing strength of the party system. The Government used the direct control over MPs to force the House of Commons to surrender decisions about the timetable to the executive and to give up the House's power to appoint select committees and to order the publication of government papers. One of the first two committees to be appointed was asked "to consider Science and Technology and to report thereon." The action taken over the Agriculture Committee affected the treatment of the whole select committee experiment.
