The idea of the Security Commission, initially canvassed by the Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, was first publicly suggested by his successor Sir Alec Douglas-Home in a Parliamentary debate about the Denning Report into the Profumo affair on 16 December 1963.
Douglas-Home envisaged that the commission would consist of retired civil servants and would be chaired by someone from the judiciary.
It was to investigate matters referred to it by the Prime Minister of the day and issue its reports back to the Prime Minister, with the Leader of the Opposition consulted before any inquiry and after the report was completed.
[2] Douglas-Home met with the Leader of the Opposition Harold Wilson (who had given a cautious welcome to the proposal) on 22 January to agree the details.
Latterly its members were: This article related to government in the United Kingdom or its constituent countries is a stub.