This book argues that committees are essential for the efficient dispatch of parliamentary business and shows how several parliaments have recently reformed their committee systems to function more effectively. In particular, the book provides in-depth knowledge and a broader understanding of Israel ’s committees and how they compare with the committees of other legislatures around the world.
“Hazan’s penetrating investigation of the Knesset political system and his pursuit of the substance and feasibility of committee reform, makes this book not only a valuable contribution of the rather meager literature of parliamentary committees, but also an important basis for the appraisal and reform of the parliamentary committees in Israel.”
Samuel C. Patterson, Ohio State University
On Reforming Parliamentary Committees, from the American Political Science Review
The author’s placement of the committee issue within the larger debate in Israel over the shape of the electoral system yields interesting insights. Indeed, the author’s analysis of the various phases of Israeli political development in the context of the general worldwide phenomenon of executive dominance of the legislative branch effectively clarifies the main issues on the agenda of committee reform in ways that inform beyond the immediate case at hand... Reforming Parliamentary Committees has much to offer the student of the legislative process.
