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<p>In June 2012 a working group established by the Speaker of the House of Commons
and the Lord Speaker reported on the operation and funding of all-party groups. The
working group had three members of the House on it. It heard from the then chairman
of the House of Lords Sub-Committee on Lords’ Conduct; conducted an email survey of
members of the House; and held a discussion meeting open to all members of the House.</p><p>Following
the working group’s report the House of Commons Committee on Standards began an inquiry
into all-party groups, taking its first evidence in June 2013. In view of concern
that the inquiry had yet to hear from any member of the Lords, in July 2013 the Lord
Speaker wrote to the party whips and the Convenor of the Crossbench peers to alert
them to the inquiry and the fact that members of the House of Lords were entitled
to make submissions.</p><p>Shortly before the Standards Committee’s report on All-Party
Parliamentary Groups was published in November 2013 the chair of that committee wrote
to the Lord Speaker alerting her to its emerging thinking and enclosing the new rules
which that committee was proposing. The Committee’s report, and the proposed new rules,
were agreed by the House of Commons on 13 May 2014.</p><p>Since the House of Commons
passed the first resolution regulating all-party groups in 1985, decisions on the
rules for all-party groups have been for the House of Commons. The Register of All-Party
Groups is maintained by the House of Commons Registrar and complaints of breach of
the rules are investigated by the House of Commons Commissioner for Standards.</p>
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