But a Committee on Parliamentary Privilege in the 60s urged MPs to be extremely careful about exercising such powers.

BBC: How can select committees avoid being misled?

The Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege (at 5.05pm) is looking into some of the tangled issues around the powers of parliament and the legal protections MPs have in order to represent their constituents.

BBC: Week ahead in committees

And the two high priests of Parliament, Sir Robert Rogers, the Clerk of the Commons, and his Lords opposite number, David Beamish, Clerk of the Parliaments, stage a joint appearance before the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege.

BBC: Week ahead in committees