Quality Assurance and Efficiency Committee

Meeting 478

25 December 1998

Present

Apologies: Harry

Agenda

  1. Generation of minutes
  2. Fruitless discussion
  3. Length of meetings

478.1: Generation of minutes

It was generally agreed that the minutes of previous meetings were insufficiently detailed. Norman explained that it had taken only a day to read the previous meetings discussion.

Action 478.1.1 on Graeme:

Issue meeting minutes in several volumes

478.2: Fruitless discussion

Norman complained that several of the discussions in the previous agenda had been conclusive, and generated even more work for the heavily pressed committee members. This was discussed at great length, with the general feeling that the committee was being over-incisive, and inappropriately restricting its potential for reappraisal of decisions, by being too hasty to rush to action.

There was some disagreement, however, and it was generally felt, after a prolonged but fascinating discussion, that no specific action was necessary to remedy the situation, and the committee therefore committed itself to magisterial inaction on this important and sensitive issue.

478.3: Length of meetings

Norman noted that the previous meeting had been almost entirely completed within a single day. This worrying development had unfairly caused some participants to be expected to do some work outside of the meeting.

Graeme suggested that the committee consider the procedural possibilities of having the committee immediately reconvene as soon as it had finished one meeting's business, to bring about an immediate review of progress.

Action 478.3.1 on Norman, Graeme:

Research the historical development of committee procedural best practice.

Graeme explained at length that, since there had been only a three-hour gap between the previous meeting and its predecessor, he had been able to produce only a hundred pages of minutes. He realised this was inadequate to sustain a suitably expressive discussion on `accepting the minutes', and resolved to do better in future.

Action 478.3.2 on ALL:

Avoid wearisome concision.

Actions

  • Action 478.1.1 on Graeme:

    Issue meeting minutes in several volumes

  • Action 478.3.1 on Norman, Graeme:

    Research the historical development of committee procedural best practice.

  • Action 478.3.2 on ALL:

    Avoid wearisome concision.


  • Printable version: RTF, LaTeX, PostscriptMinutes taken by Norman