FOR the first time in more than 330 years, MPs held a meeting in an Oxford building which Parliament used to regularly call home.

The Divinity School, part of the Bodleian Library, hosted parliamentarians three times in the 17th century due to plague in London and unrest in the capital as a result of King Charles II’s rule. King Charles I also moved his Royalist Parliament there in 1644.

Yesterday it was the setting for a special meeting of the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, which is chaired by Oxford West and Abingdon MP Nicola Blackwood. The meeting was held as part of Parliament Week 2015 and was designed to encourage more people to take an active part in democracy.

MPs were watched by sixth form students who had a chance to quiz the committee and those who gave evidence to it.

The committee discussed Britain’s response to the Ebola crisis and the challenges arising from so-called internet ‘big data’.

Speaking before the event Ms Blackwood said: “We need to make sure that we are accessible to my non-scientist colleagues but also make sure we are accessible to a wider range of the population.

“It is important we have young people taking up STEM (science, technology, English and maths) subjects.

“We have not made any decision on whether we will come back to Oxford again or not.

“We need to see if we survive what I am confident will be a very challenging and stimulating audience.”