Parliamentary Committees
House of Representatives

At-A-Glance

Membership

4 from the Ruling Party, 2 from the Opposition

Independence

Committees have total independence in their deliberations

Reporting

Findings must be reported back to the House

Formation and Composition

At the first business Sitting of the House of Representatives, after a general election a Committee of Selection is selected by the Speaker and given the authority to select Members of all Standing Committees of the House. Each Standing Committee usually consists of six Members, four from the ruling party and two from the Opposition party. The composition is determined by the proportion of Members represented in each political party in the House.

 

Exceptions to this composition are the Joint Public Accounts Committee (JPAC) and the Women’s Parliamentarians’ Caucus Committee (WPC). The JPAC is a House standing committee, a joint committee comprised of 6 members from the House and 3 members from the Senate selected from among the senators representing the business community, the churches, the trade unions and the network of non-governmental organizations. Membership of the House standing committee of women parliamentarians is a joint committee comprised of women parliamentarians in both the House and the Senate. Where a Presiding Officer of either chamber is a woman, they may sit in on this committee meeting from time to time.

 

Nature and Authority

The Standing Committees of the House of Representatives, by nature, are creatures of the House. They undertake business on behalf of the House. The Standing Committees also have the authority to initiate their own work. They derived their powers from the House Standing Orders and they must report their findings back to the House. JPAC is the only standing committee the Standing Orders authorize to meet in public.  

Deliberations and Public Input

The Committees consider matters that are within their terms of reference. Each Committee is afforded total independence in its deliberations and can do detailed examination on matters before it which is not possible in the Committee of the Whole House.

 

In most cases it allows members of the public to have direct input in the process by:

  • Inviting written submissions

  • Attendance of meetings in person

  • A Committee may travel within Belize to hear the public’s view on a particular matter that is referred to it

Special Committees

In addition to what is mentioned above, Special Committees can be appointed by order of the House with specific terms of reference. A Special Committee ceases to exist after it has completed its mandate and presented its final report to the House.

Membership and Ministerial Participation

The Membership of each Standing Committee usually excludes the Prime Minister and other Cabinet Ministers who have particular interest in the work of a Committee. A Minister may choose to attend a particular meeting as an observer with the permission of the Committee and may participate in Committee debate, but does not have a right to vote.

Alternate Membership

House of Representatives Standing Order section 73 (4) states that every Member of a Standing Committee may appoint an alternative Member of the House who may attend the meetings of the Committee in the event of the inability of such Member to attend, and every alternate so appointed shall have the same power and authority (including but not limited to the right of vote) as enjoyed by the Member by whom they were so appointed.

Note: Inability in this case means that a Member is either out of the country or is ill.

Leadership of the Committees

The chairperson

Each Standing Committee must elect a chairperson at the first business meeting.

  • Absence

    In the temporary absence of the chairperson, the Member next in rank in the order the names are listed shall act as chairperson.

  • Vacancies

    In the case of a permanent vacancy in the chairpersonship of any Committee, the Committee of Selection of the House shall recommend the appointment of a new chairperson to the House for its approval.

  • Role

    The chairperson is responsible for maintaining order and decorum during meetings, deciding questions of procedure, and generally ensuring that the Committee’s work proceed smoothly in accordance with the Standing Orders.

Main Responsibilities of the Chairperson

The main responsibilities of a chairperson of any Standing Committee are:

  1. To rule on all procedural matters

  2. To call Committee meetings, subject to the authorization of the Committee

  3. To sign Committee Reports and present them to the House

Learn More

If you want more in detailed information, see the Standing Orders of the House of Representatives.

Standing Orders of the House of Representatives
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