Testing ministers through parliamentary committees

The proposed reform would require senior ministers to win approval from the relevant select committee before taking office, and committee support for their removal. Its intended benefit is greater scrutiny of appointments and more continuity at the top of a department. A suggestion that ministers must have worked in their sector meets objections: experience in one part of transport could favour cars over railways, while a knowledgeable observer might understand the whole system without having worked within it. Strict eligibility rules also prompt a warning about the army and navy minister arrangements in Imperial Japan. Committee examination is preferred here as a way to test competence without giving one professional group control over eligibility.