Select committees currently accepting written evidence (compiled 4 December 2024) (last updated: 4 December)

Please click the title of any inquiry listed below to be taken to a summary of that inquiry and the full call for evidence. Remember that you don’t have to answer every question posed in each call for evidence.

New calls for evidence launched since 4 December 2024:

All inquiries currently accepting written evidence:

Why should I engage? Submitting evidence to a select committee can lead to further engagement, such as an invitation to give oral evidence. Your submission will be published on the Committee webpage. Your insights may inform the Committee’s conclusions or the recommendations it makes to the Government. Find out more about why to engage with Parliament. You can also read more on engagement for impact.

More information: Explore all select committee inquiries currently open for submissions of written evidence. 

Resources: Find guidance on submitting evidence to select committees on the KEU’s ‘how to guides’ page. Watch our 30 minute online training session “How to work with select committees”

Could you recommend any experts in the costs of the current framework of adult social care in England? 

The Health and Social Care Committee has launched an inquiry on “Adult Social Care Reform: the cost of inaction”, which seeks to make a case for reforming adult social care by highlighting the cost of maintaining the status quo. The inquiry is considering social care for older adults and working age adults. The focus includes personal financial costs, financial costs to the NHS and local authorities, and the cost to the wider economy (including levels of economic activity). They are also focusing on wider personal costs and the benefits being forgone as a result of inaction. 

The secretariat is looking for researchers with an expertise in quantifying the cost of the status quo in adult social care, or in health and care economics. This might include those working on: the economic value of adult social care and how that could be grown; the impact of caring responsibilities on employment levels and hours spent in work; how much the impact of inadequate social care provision is costing the NHS; and any other relevant quantitative work in this area. 

There may be opportunities for researchers to feed into the work by:

  •  submitting written evidence, 
  • giving oral evidence, or
  • briefing members of the Committee or Committee staff in private

Should you wish to contribute your expertise to this inquiry or to nominate an expert colleague, we’d be grateful to hear from you. Please note that the Committee may not be able to select everyone who responds at this time.   
   
To express an interest in contributing to this inquiry, or to recommend a colleague, please complete this short form by Thursday 19 December 2024.  

Why should I engage? Submitting evidence to a select committee can lead to further engagement, such as an invitation to give oral evidence. Your submission will be published on the Committee webpage. Your insights may inform the Committee’s conclusions or the recommendations it makes to the Government. Find out more about why to engage with Parliament. You can also read more on engagement for impact.

More information: Explore all select committee inquiries currently open for submissions of written evidence. 

Resources: Find guidance on submitting evidence to select committees on the KEU’s ‘how to guides’ page. Watch our 30 minute online training session “How to work with select committees”

Meet Parliament’s Thematic Research Leads: Dr David Strain (Health)

This week we’re featuring Dr David Strain, the Thematic Research Lead for Health.

Dr David Strain is an Associate Professor in Cardiometabolic Health at the University of Exeter Medical School, and a Consultant in General Internal Medicine, Healthcare for Older adults and Stroke Medicine at the Royal Devon Universities Healthcare Foundation Trust.

His focus of research is improving and preventing metabolic disease in adults; ensuring the right patient gets the right treatment. This includes research exploring the mechanism that some medications, give benefits for people living with diabetes, obesity, heart disease and stroke beyond their effect as well as researching new, and innovative treatments for these diseases. The hope is to identify those who would benefit most before arising.  He also is heavily involved in research into Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Long Covid, exploring the genetics of the disease, hoping to identify novel treatment targets whilst repurposing existing drugs to help treat the symptoms.

Clinically, he is co-clinical lead of the Healthcare for Older Adults and Stroke departments at the RDUH hospital, having been the Clinical Lead for Covid Services including acute care, Covid Medicines Delivery Unit and Long Covid services. Our work in Covid resulted in some of the best outcomes through the first couple of Covid waves in the UK, and we continue to have an exemplar CMDU protecting clinically extremely vulnerable patients in the South West.

As TRL for Heath David is based within the Health, Social Care and Wellbeing Hub part of the Research and Information and Select Committee teams. Since joining us as a TRL, he has worked with the Health Select Committee drafting briefings for Members, he has helped on the launch of the inquiry pondering the role of foods, such as ‘ultra-processed foods’, and foods high in fat, salt and sugar, in a healthy diet and tackling obesity for the Lords Select Committee on Food, Diet and Obesity. Now he is organising an inquiry on a NAO report on cardiovascular disease prevention and what went wrong with some recent policy. 

David is keen to hear about Health research which may be of interest to Parliament. If you would like to introduce yourself and your research to David, please fill out this form. David may not be able to respond to all introductions. However, please know your contact has been received and is valued. David will note your expertise area and store your contact details in line with our privacy policy ready to get in touch when Parliament is focussing on your research topic.

Thank you to everyone who has already introduced their research to David. If you filled out the form we shared previously, there is no need to resubmit your details.

Why should I engage? Thematic Research Leads (TRLs) are prestigious and influential roles, designed in partnership with UKRI to facilitate and enhance the use of research evidence and expertise in Parliament through effective knowledge exchange and collaboration. Introducing yourself to the new TRLs is a great opportunity to be involved in their work.

More information: Find out more about our Thematic Research Lead programme. Read about the work of our first cohort of TRLs:

Parliamentary Fact

Following the Lords

Each year the House of Lords Liaison Committee publishes an overview of the work carried out by the Lords investigative and scrutiny committees.
In 2023/24 Lords committees:

  • held 603 committee meetings
  • heard from 1065 witnesses
  • received 1780 written submissions; and
  • published 57 reports.

The House of Lords has permanent committees and committees that are set up for a time limited period or to delve into a particular policy area.

The permanent committees hold broad remits and are not time limited. They examine a wide range of policies and proposed laws across both short, focused inquiries or long-term, expansive investigations.

So what?

The Lords model where committees are set up for a limited period or to investigate a policy area provides great opportunities for researchers to engage because the business changes frequently and addresses topics of current or significant interest to society. However, researchers have told us it’s difficult to know when and which committees have been set up. Here are our two top tips for staying on top of the Lords committees:

  1. On parliament’s A-Z ‘find a committee’ webpage you can select to only view Lords (or Lords and Joint) committees. This will list all the current Lords committees (there are currently 35).
  2. Each January watch out for the special inquiry committees announcement. There are usually around four special inquiry committees established in the new year which provide a year-long in-depth focus on a particular topic. Their extended inquiry period provides a more relaxed timescale for researchers to get involved and share evidence. You can read about the 2024 special inquiry committees here and we’ll announce in the round up when the new 2025 special inquiry committees are announced.

More information:

Reminders: shared in a previous round-up

Some of the opportunities we’ve shared in previous round-ups are still open: