Parlimentry Law Making - Finished

Question 1

What is a Bill

Answer 1

A proposal for a new Law

Question 2

What are the 2 documents proposed before a Bill is made

Answer 2

Green Paper
White Paper

Question 3

What is a Green Paper

Answer 3

Document issued by the government
- Contains proposals for debate and discussion about legislative proposals

Question 4

Are there any initial discussions for a Green Paper

Answer 4

Yes
- The green paper gives people inside and outside an opportunity to give feedback

Question 5

Why are there discussions initially about the concept of a Green Paper

Answer 5

It brings in different views and aspects from different people
- Ensures the best variant of the bill is chosen

Question 6

What colour paper is the Green Paper printed on

Answer 6

Unsurprisingly, it is printed on pale green paper

Question 7

What is a White Paper

Answer 7

The next document issued by a government department
- Contains detailed proposals for legislation

Question 8

What is the difference between the Green and White Paper

Answer 8

The White paper is more informative and descriptive about the legislative proposal

Question 9

What is significant about the White Paper stage

Answer 9

It is the final stage of the paper before it enters the Parliament in the form of a bill

Question 10

Who proposes the Bill in parliament

Answer 10

The minister responsible for the department must introduce the bill

Question 11

Which House is the bill usually introduced in, and to who?

Answer 11

House of Commons to the rest of Parliament

Question 12

How many stages does a Bill go through (exclusing the paper process)

Answer 12

6

Question 13

Name the 6 stages a bill goes through to become a Law

Answer 13

First Reading
Second Reading
Committee Stage
Report Stage
Third Reading
Royal Assent

Question 14

Explain the FIrst Reading

Answer 14

Aims and title off the bill are read out. No debate
Verbal vote to decide whether it goes to second reading

Question 15

If the First Reasing is successful when does the Second reading take place

Answer 15

Often set as the next day

Question 16

Explain the Second Reading

Answer 16

Main policy areas of the bill are debated by the whole House
Led by minister that proposed the bill
Vote taken, if majority agrees, goes to committee stage

Question 17

What is significant about the Committee Stage

Answer 17

Usually, if a Bill passes the Committee Stage, it is unlikely that the bill will fail to become an Act of Parliament, although the nature of the bill might change, following amendments

Question 18

Explain the Committee Stage

Answer 18

Up to 50 mp’s conduct a line-by-line examination of each and every cause of the bill
Mp’s that expertise in the area of bill are chosen
A vote before report stage

Question 19

Why do MP’s in the Committee Stage examine the Bill, line by line

Answer 19

They debate each and every line, in order to refine the language used and to amend any problematic issues that present themselves.

Question 20

Explain the Report Stage

Answer 20

Committee reports back to the whole House on the issues raised in the Committee Stage and on any amendments made
Additional amendments if necessary
Another vote to go to 3rd reading

Question 21

Explain the Third Reading

Answer 21

Final review of entire bill.
This stage is often a formality, as most of the issues would have been addressed at earlier stages. After a successful vote, the bill then passes to the House of Lords, where the same stages are repeated, albeit with a few differences

Question 22

Are there any differences in the process of the Bill in the House of Lords

Answer 22

Yes, apart from the first and second readings, the process is different

Question 23

Explain the Royal Assent

Answer 23

The monarch, or rather someone appointed on her behalf, signs off on a bill, bringing it into law

Question 24

At what time following the Royal Assent stage does the Bill become a Law

Answer 24

On the day that assent is given, the bill will usually become law at midnight, unless there needs to be a delay

Question 25

What is a Private Bill

Answer 25

Bill’s that only affect individual people or cooperations, rather than the public at large

Question 26

Outline 1 advantage of the Bill Process

Person

Answer 26

Democratic - It is dominated by the elected government (at least every 5 years), with MPs in the House of Commons who are elected to make laws and to represent the views of their constituents by the public

Ensures that people of high legal expertise are creating the bill with knowledge of the public’s concerns and views

Question 27

Outline 1 advantage of the Bill Process

Time

Answer 27

Lengthy - Due to the process of a law being made being long with multiple attempts to spot out any misclarifications it can allow the bill to be as efficient as possible and thorough

Question 28

Give a disadvantage of the processs of making a Bill

Answer 28

Slow and time consuming - The Bill must go through many stages of consultation then debate in both Houses – First Reading, Second Reading, Committee Stage, Report Stage and Third Reading, which takes many months, and is not appropriate when laws need to be made quickly

Question 29

What is the movement of the bill from house of common to house of lords and vice versa referred to as

Answer 29

The ‘Ping Pong’