Legisaltive Process

Question 1

What is a bill?

Answer 1

Draft legislative proposal, when completed process becomes an act of parliament

Question 2

Where and when does the government set out the legislative programme?

Answer 2

In kings speech at beginning of parliamentary session

Question 3

What is a green paper that the goverment may produce?

Answer 3

Setting out options for legislation

Question 4

What is a white paper that the goverment may produce?

Answer 4

Explaining objective of goverment policy

Question 5

What do select committees do to draft bills?

Answer 5

Scrutinise them and this may lead to redrafting of bill or influence debate however the goverment can ignore their objections

Question 6

Where does most legislation originate?

Answer 6

House of Commons- some bills that are non - controversial/ complex matters can be in the House of Lords

Question 7

Who are private member bills initiated by and what 3 routes do they take?

Answer 7

Backbenches rather than goverment
Three routes- ballot, ten minuite bill or presentation

Question 8

Explain the ballot route of a private members bill?

Answer 8

20 names of MPs who wish to introduce bill drawn in ballot. Ballots allocated time on 13 Fridays. Some fall victim to filibustering

Question 9

Explain the ten minuite bill route a private members bill may take?

Answer 9

MPs have 10 minuites to introduce a bill or an aspect of existing piece of legislation

Question 10

Explain the presentation route a private members bill may take?

Answer 10

MPs present a bill on the floor of the house by introducing the name of the bill

Question 11

What two factors mean that most private member bills fail at an early stage?

Answer 11

Time constraints and difficulty of persuading MPs to back

Question 12

What are two landmark private member bills?

Answer 12

Abortion act 1967
Death penalty 1955

Question 13

What are Phillip nortons three fold
Classifications of legislatures?

Answer 13

Policy making legislatures
Policy influencing legislatures
Legislatures with little/ no policy influence

Question 14

What powers do policy making legislatures have?

Answer 14

Can amend and reject proposals and put forward alternative bill

Question 15

What powers do policy influencing legislatures have?

Answer 15

Can modify and reject proposal from the executive, but can’t develop own proposal

Question 16

What powers or lack of do legislatures with little/ no policy influence have?

Answer 16

Can’t modify or veto proposal or form meaningful alternative proposal of their own

Question 17

What 3 factors prove that law making occurs through, and not by uk parliament?

Answer 17

Goverment bills
Parliamentary timetable
Payroll vote

Question 18

How do goverment bills prove that law making occurs through and not by the uk parliament?

Answer 18

Most bills originate from the goverment. Private bills have little chance of passing

Question 19

How does the parliamentary timetable prove that law making occurs through and not by the uk parliament?

Answer 19

The executive controls much of the legislative timetable

Question 20

What is the payroll vote?

Answer 20

Ministers support the goverment of resign. 40% of MPs from the governing party are on the payroll vote