2.3 Legislative process

Question 1

5

Describe the Salisbury Convention

Answer 1

• HoL will not reject/amend manifesto item passed by HoC
• Convention states that unelected, unaccountable body should not hinder legitimate policies
• However recent reforms to make HoL more professional have led greater challenging of manifesto legislation, especially if the exact details of policy change
• Lords can propose ‘reasoned amendments’ at second reading, but not ‘wrecking amendments’
• debates over whether convention should apply to minority/coalition government

Question 2

3

Describe ‘wrecking amendments’

Answer 2

• A bill that would make the legislation unworkable or contradictionary
• e.g. Lord Dear proposed ‘wrecking amendment’ on Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill that would have forced religious organisations to opt-in to offering homosexual weddings, with CoE being banned from doing so
• Speaker can refuse to select such amendments for debate

Question 3

7

Outline the legislative process

Answer 3

• First reading - bill introduced to HoC (or HoL)
• Second reading
• Committee stage - scrutiny by committee
• Report stage
• Third reading
• Passage to HoL (or HoC) + ‘ping pong’ for up to year
• Royal Assent

Question 4

3

Describe the second reading

Answer 4

• main debate held, followed by vote
• gives opportunity for opposition to voice views
• possible for bill to pass with no debate

Question 5

8

Describe the committee stage

Answer 5

• Public Bill Committee (exclusive to HoC) set up to deal with bill
• party whips dominate selection of members
• Take evidence from experts and interest groups
• Government can table amendments which are debated on
• amendments for discussion selected by Committee chair and voted on only by committee members
• minority of bills dealt with whole HoC
• Applies to all bills, bar money bills
• Composition of public bill committees reflects composition in Parliament and thus Government rarely loses committee stage vote

Question 6

2

Describe the report stage

Answer 6

• All MPs can suggest amendments which then are voted on
• Bill debated with passed amendments included

Question 7

2

Describe the Third Reading

Answer 7

• final debate and last opportunity to block legislation
• no more amendments can be tabled

Question 8

4

Describe parliamentary ‘ping-pong’

Answer 8

• Once passed third reading in HoC, bill will begin HoL first reading (or vice-versa)
• HoL cannot veto bill, but can propose and pass amendments
• HoC and HoL must approve amendments from other house
• Back and forth continues until both agree

Question 9

1

Describe royal assent

Answer 9

monarch signs bill into law, marking formal passage

Question 10

4

Describe the differences in the House of Lords legislative process

Answer 10

• Before committee stage, amendments published in ‘Marshall’s list’
• In committee stage, the government cannot limit subjects under discussion or impose a time limit - unlike in the HoC
• HoL meets as whole house in commitee stage
• Amendments can be added at third reading provided it has not already been discussed at committee or report stage - unlike in HoC

Question 11

3

Describe the whip system

Answer 11

• Parties appoint chief and deputy whips in HoL and HoC
• Ensure that fellow legislators attend and vote according to party lines
• Powers of patronage employed e.g. proposing withdrawal of funding for local constituency if MP threatens to break whip

Question 12

3

Describe the levels of the whip

Answer 12

• One-line whip - attendance requested
• Two-line whip - attendance necessary
• Three-line whip - attendance essential (may expel members/remove whip e.g. Ken Clarke, Amber Rudd)

Question 13

4

Describe the power of the whip

Answer 13

• large parliamentary majority will make voting/debates largely a formality due to whip
• Members whipped to vote on amendments in Public Bill Committees
• Also influence selection of Public Bill Committee members
• MPs who defy whip are unlikely to advance careers e.g. Jeremy Corbyn held no ministerial role during New Labour

Question 14

3

Describe how PMBs are introduced in the House of Commons

Answer 14

• Ballot - MPs put forward proposal. 20 enter ballot and top seven usually debated. Most PMBs introduced this way
• Ten-Minute Rule - slot on Tuesday and Wednesday for MP to propose legislation in ten-minute speech. Less likely to be successful
• Presentation - formal presentation to HoC

Question 15

1

Describe how PMBs are introduced in the House of Lords

Answer 15

selected using ballot at start of each parliamentary session

Question 16

2

Describe the success of PMBs

Answer 16

• Can be successful if attains cross-party, and importantly, government support
• e.g. Andrew Rosindell’s Animals (Penalty Notices) Bill 2021 which proposed £5k fines for animal abuse quickly passed Parliament due to support of Government

Question 17

4

Describe the failure of PMBs

Answer 17

• Limited parliamentary time given to debate them on Fridays
• May lack numbers to hold division (vote)
• e.g. Peter Kyle MP’s 2018 PMB to reduce voting age to 16 not given enough time by government to proceed
• Role of PMBs generally serves to raise profile of issue rather than changing law

Question 18

5

List some notable defeats in the House of Commons

Answer 18

• Shops Bill 1986 - government lost despite 140-seat majority (due to religious rebels); failed due to 27 Tory rebels in 2016
• Terrorism Act 2006
• Syrian intervention 2013
• EU withdrawal Agreement 2018 - 230 vote loss (highest ever)
• Letwin Amendment 2019

Question 19

4

Describe the Terrorism Act 2006 government defeat in 2005

Answer 19

• Included clause to detain terrorists suspects without charge for 90 days
• 49 Labour MPs rebelled
• Govenrment defeated 322-291
• First Blair loss in HoC
• Clause dropped from Act

Question 20

3

Describe the government defeat on Syria intervention in 2013

Answer 20

• Coalition defeated on motion to authorise military intervention in Syria provided the UN had proved Assad had carried out a chemical weapons attack
• Surprise defeat due to 30 Con and 9 LD rebels
• 285-272 defeat (13 vote loss)

Question 21

3

Describe the government defeat in the Letwin amendment 2019

Answer 21

• Emergency debate called by Oliver Letwin MP to allow HoC to take control of parliamentary business to prevent Government forcing through no-deal
• 21 pro-EU Tories rebelled
• Motion passed 328 - 301 (27 votes)

Question 22

3

Describe a recent PMB

Answer 22

• Liam Fox introduced a Down Syndrome bill to strengthen rights of those with Down Syndrome
• Cross party sponsors: Ian Paisley, Layla Moran
• Passed into law 2022