House of Commons Commission (external members)

The House of Commons Commission is the statutory authority responsible for the administration of the House of Commons.

What are the responsibilities of the House of Commons Commission?

The House of Commons Commission is responsible for:

• setting the strategic priorities and objectives of the House of Commons departments
• employing House of Commons staff
• setting the House of Commons’ budget
• determining the functions of the House of Commons departments

Who are the members of the House of Commons Commission?

The House of Commons Commission is chaired by the Speaker of the House of Commons. It also contains:

• six MPs
• two House of Commons officials
• two external members

The external members of the Commission must be appointed by resolution of the House of Commons. They must first be recruited on merit through fair and open competition, and their appointment must be agreed to by the parliamentary members of the Commission.

At the time of writing, Shrinivas Honap is the only external member of the Commission (his term started on 1 October 2021 and runs until 30 September 2026).

Catherine Ward was the second external member of the Commission until her term ended on 31 December 2025 (a replacement external member is due to start their term on 1 May 2026; see below).

The Commission’s members are listed on its website.

Who has the Commission proposed as new external members?

The Commission has proposed that Elizabeth Honer and Nick Ong-Seng should be appointed as new external members.

The Commission has said that Elizabeth Honer should be appointed to replace the already-departed Catherine Ward “as soon as possible”, and that Nick Ong-Seng should be appointed to replace Shrinivas Honap on 1 October 2026, when his term ends. The Commission has said that the new external members should be appointed for three years each.

The Commission described the recruitment process for the new external members in its report External members of the House of Commons Commission: nomination of candidates (PDF), which was published on 20 April 2026.

On 22 April 2026, the Leader of the House tabled a motion to appoint Elizabeth Honer and Nick Ong-Seng for three years from their respective start dates.