MPs reject children's tsar appointment

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A key flagship constitutional innovation introduced by Gordon Brown has hit the rocks after one of his closest allies rejected a Commons committee's call not to proceed with the planned appointment of a new children's commissioner.

The prime minister expanded the range of senior public roles which are subject to a pre-appointment hearing by a Commons committee shortly after taking office.

His move was designed to indicate the executive's willingness to give Parliament a greater role in scrutinising major appointments.

But on Monday the Commons children, schools and families committee refused to endorse Ed Balls' appointment of a key adviser on children's issues after holding a pre-appointment hearing with the candidate.

The schools secretary had named Maggie Atkinson, director of children's services at Gateshead Council, as the new children's commissioner, tasked with speaking up for vulnerable children.

However, the cross-party schools committee refused to back the appointment because it said she does not have the necessary independence to "challenge the status quo on children's behalf".

Labour MP Barry Sheerman, who chairs the committee, has questioned whether Atkinson has the "independence of mind" to stand up to the schools secretary.

The committee felt that in the wake of the Baby P scandal, the children's commissioner needed to be able to campaign for better support for children.

However, Balls has said he is pressing on with the appointment, claiming Atkinson would be a "strong, effective and independent voice for the children and young people of our country".

In a letter addressed to Sheerman, he said: "It is for these reasons that I have decided to appoint Maggie Atkinson to be the next children's commissioner for England and I am delighted that she has accepted that appointment.

"I look forward to her taking up office on 1 March 2010."

The committee chairman told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Balls is a "bully" and added that the decision to override the committee's rejection of the appointment was a "bad day for parliamentary democracy".

"Time after time, we see the secretary of state wanting to have people who will do his bidding," Sheerman stated.

"He is more of an executive man, rather than a parliamentary man, and I think it is a bad day for parliamentary democracy when - if we are having these pre-appointment hearings - the very first one to say it didn't agree with the appointment gets overridden."

However, the row is complicated by the fact that Balls is also one of the prime minister's closest allies, while Sheerman has called for Brown to resign as Labour leader.