Boxing clever
Eyebrows were raised to stratospheric heights when David TC Davies (the initials are the Commons officials' way of distinguishing him from the former Tory leadership contender David Davis) was elected to chair the . They rose for three reasons. First, Mr Davies is a devolution-sceptic who was prominent in the No campaign in the referendum which approved the creation of the Welsh National Assembly 12 years ago, and he was expected to take an equally prominent role in the No campaign in the planned referendum on giving the Assembly full legislative powers similar to those of the Scottish Parliament - so he wasn't exactly in tune with most parties in Wales, who favour the extra powers.
Second, he was not exactly a stalwart of the Welsh Affairs Committee in the last parliament, attending just a tenth of its meetings. Third, he's a political as well as an actual pugilist. He - while the Chairs of Select Committees are usually expected to be apostles of consensus. But he won the job - allocated to a Conservative - anyway; and in an interview for Friday night's Today in Parliament, he may have managed to lower a few of those quizzical eyebrows.
Firstly, he remains a devo-sceptic and is not about to change his views on the Assembly (on which he served for eight years). But he will not now be a standard-bearer for the No" campaign in the impending referendum. He does not think it would be appropriate for a committee chair to take sides. He doubts the committee will take sides either - but it may look at issues around the timing and conduct of the referendum - and in particular the funding of the opposing campaigns. The scars of the narrow Yes vote 12 years ago are clearly still present, as he complains that the Yes Campaign then was well funded - including, he says, with some indirectly-paid public money - while the No Campaign was run on a shoestring.
On the attendance issue, he points out that he was a member of both the Welsh Affairs and the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Affairs Committees in the last parliament, and that their meetings usually clashed. He chose the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Affairs meetings, because he wanted to broaden his experience beyond purely Welsh issues, and he maintains that will make him a better hair now.
And on the pugilism... he agrees he'll have to curb his normal political instincts, a bit, anyway. But he points out that he had cross-party support when he ran for his new job, and colleagues, he says, believe he will be fair and objective. Those MPs who're anticipating fireworks from him will be watching with interest.
NB: Advance warning of a few politics highlights on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ this weekend. The Week in Westminster on Radio 4 at 11am: Eleanor Goodman explores the fine art of parliamentary heckling with Labour MPs Mary Creagh and Pamela Nash - who's the youngest member of the Commons.
And Straight Talk with Andrew Neil: the new Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ, the licence fee, and giving the Parliament access to the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's accounts via the National Audit Office. You can see the interview on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ NEWS CHANNEL on Saturday 26 June at 1.30am, 4.30am, 2.30pm and 11.30pm, Sunday 27 June at 1.30am and 11.30pm and Tuesday 29 June at 3.30am.
I'm Mark D'Arcy and I'll be writing about what goes on in the chambers and committee rooms at Westminster.
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