Committees

Nominations open for the Foreign Affairs Committee Chair

6 September 2024

MPs have begun the process of electing a Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the new Parliament.

The Speaker announced the timetable for the elections on July 30. The period of nominations will run until 4pm on Monday 9 September, with the ballot scheduled for Wednesday 11 September.

The new Chair will be elected from the Labour party under the allocation of committee chairs to political parties which was agreed by the House on 30 July 2024.  

Since 2010, most committee chairs have been elected by the whole House, by a system of alternative vote and by secret ballot. To be valid, nominations must contain a signed statement made by the candidate declaring their willingness to stand.

It must be accompanied by the signatures of 15 MPs elected to the Commons as members of the same political party as the candidate (or 10 per cent of the MPs elected to the House as members of that party, whichever is the lower). More than 15 signatures can be collected but only the first 15 valid signatures are printed. Members may only nominate one candidate per select committee.

Nominations may be accompanied by the signatures of up to five MPs elected to the House as members of any party other than to which the chair is allocated or of no party. Similarly, only five such signatures are printed.

Candidates must declare any relevant interests with their nomination. Valid nominations received each day are published with the next day's Order Paper and will be listed below.

Nominations

Candidate: Dan Carden

Supporters (own party): Graham Stringer, Peter Dowd, Anneliese Midgley, Connor Naismith, Florence Eshalomi, Brian Leishman, Josh Fenton-Glynn, Sojan Joseph, Neil Coyle, Navendu Mishra, Carolyn Harris, Paula Barker, Mohammad Yasin, Rachel Hopkins, Bill Esterson

Supporters (other parties or no party): Alicia Kearns, Mr Alistair Carmichael, Daisy Cooper, Andrew Rosindell, Chris Law

Relevant interests declared: Executive Member, Inter-Parliamentary Union; Chair, APPG for Mexico.

Supporting statement:

I have a specific vision for the role of Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee. It is to hold the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office accountable to Parliament through the collective endeavour of its members, and to strengthen the relationship with members of other parliaments who are our allies. I will steer the Foreign Affairs Committee calmly and constructively in the interests of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and Parliament.

The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary speak for the UK Government on foreign policy. In a time of increasing global tensions and conflict, it is important that our nation’s foreign policy attracts the broadest possible consensus across Parliament. This can only be delivered through proper scrutiny and accountability, and I will work with all parties to achieve this.

The Foreign Affairs Committee is one of the most important institutions in our Parliament. I have the experience to fulfil the role of Chair. I have served as a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, as Shadow International Development Secretary and as a Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy with direct experience of trade negotiations.

I have already formed a strong relationship with Ukrainian Members of the Rada to deepen our alliance. This will remain a priority for me. I have represented Parliament around the world, participating in high-level meetings at the United Nations, the U.S. Congress, COP, and IPU Assemblies. As a member of the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Global Executive Committee, I have contributed to international diplomacy, guiding an organisation of 180 national parliaments.

The strength of this Committee lies in its members, not in any single individual or party. With me as Chair, committee members will work together focusing on our shared priorities. My views draw on the legacy of Ernest Bevin, who played a leading role in establishing the UN and NATO. He believed that we must work with our allies to deter hostile powers and that the Government must be held accountable to Parliament alone.

I am committed to strengthening Parliament, increasing accountability and fostering relationships with other parliaments. That is the correct role of the Select Committee and I wish to be its Chair.

Candidate: Emily Thornberry

Supporters (own party): Fabian Hamilton, Ms Polly Billington, Andrew Pakes, Marsha De Cordova, Andrew Gwynne, Mrs Sharon Hodgson, Preet Kaur Gill, Sonia Kumar, Leigh Ingham, Lloyd Hatton, Dame Nia Griffith, Karin Smyth, Yasmin Qureshi, Patricia Ferguson, Sarah Champion

Supporters (other parties or no party): Mr Andrew Mitchell, Joy Morrissey, Dame Harriett Baldwin, Christine Jardine, Layla Moran

Relevant interests declared: None

Supporting statement:

I have spent twelve of my nineteen years in Parliament in the Shadow Cabinet, serving as Shadow Defence, International Trade and Brexit Secretary and as Shadow Attorney General, and for four and a half years as Shadow Foreign Secretary.

But I am no stranger to holding the government to account from the backbenches. In those nineteen years I have also served on three select committees, tabled thousands of parliamentary questions, and spoken regularly and with authority in the Chamber and on the media. Before I was elected to Parliament, I spent twenty years as a criminal barrister.

As a result, I am one of our Parliament's most experienced serving parliamentarians, confident in forensically examining witnesses and with a wealth of diplomatic experience and relationships to draw upon. I will serve the whole House, working cross-party to show Parliament at its very best.

I believe the Committee must hold the Foreign Office to account in its pursuit of Britain’s interests in peace, prosperity, and security. It should examine the FCDO as it responds to urgent threats, while also using its time and resources to anticipate global flashpoints and see round corners.

As a former lawyer, it will always be my priority to ensure that the government maintains support for human rights and international law, without fear or favour. As Shadow Foreign Secretary I worked fiercely to hold the government to account on this issue and would do so again as committee chair.

I believe passionately in championing Britain’s soft power even in challenging times. I will be closely following government grant funding for institutions like the World Service, working in lockstep with the International Development Committee and with colleagues from all parties.

I also hope to launch investigations reflecting the priorities of diaspora communities, for whom foreign affairs can be of particular importance, into regions which may not always be at the top of the political agenda. We saw at the last election that many children of recent immigrants felt that Westminster did not speak for them, and I believe it is incumbent on us bring all of our communities into the political process.

To do any of this, the Committee must speak on behalf of the whole House. Should I be elected, my authority would come from your support and be predicated on our continued ability to work as an effective team. That is my absolute priority.

I am proud to have gained the support of colleagues from across the House as well as those of my own Party, including Shadow Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell, Shadow Minister for Development Harriett Baldwin, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran and former International Development Committee Chair Sarah Champion.

I have the parliamentary, diplomatic, and legal experience to make me an effective, no-nonsense chair of this important committee. I hope I can count on your support.

If there is anything you would like to discuss, please do contact me by emailing emily.thornberry.mp@parliament.uk. 

Further information  

Image credit: House of Commons