UK Government; Functions of Parliament - Legislative, Debate and Representation

Question 1

The 4 main functions of Parliament

Answer 1

1. Legislative
   where laws are debated, introduced and passed
2. Representative
   represents people both geographically and ideologically
3. Scrutiny
   the role of checking and scrutinising the government by questioning its actions and poring over its legislative plans, or the process by which opposition MPs ask questions and critique government actions, thereby holding the government to account.
4. Deliberative
   a forum for debate and discussion, and in times of national crisis all eyes turn to Westminster and its debates, speeches and decisions

Question 2

How does a bill become law?

Answer 2

• All proposed bills (laws) must pass through both the Lords and Commons
• All bills go through certain set stages in order to be passed; the length and opportunities for debate and scrutiny cary depending on the stage
• Every public bill is debated and can be amended
• Most government backed bills become law; by contrast, most bills proposed by backbench MP’s do not
• Every bill must receive the royal assent to become law, but today this is only a formality

Question 3

Pre-legislative scrutiny

Answer 3

• Pre-legislative scrutiny has increased in recent years and draft bills are sometimes published that are scrutinised by a select committee or a joint committee before their formal introduction to parliament
• E.g. an inquiry was launched into the draft Tenant Fees Bill in November 2017 by the Communities and Local Government select committee
• 10 draft bills were handled in this way during the 2017-2019 parliamentary session
• The government’s legislative programme is set out in the Queen’s Speech at the start of each parliamentary session; all bills then go through a process of scrutiny, amendment and debate

Question 4

What is a green paper?

Answer 4

A discussion document, usually a preliminary report of government proposals, such as the adult social care paper published in September of 2019. A government document setting out the issues and options for legislation.

Question 5

What is a white paper?

Answer 5

This is a policy document that sets out proposals for the future legislation and can include draft versions of the Bill being planned. Sets out the detailed plans and proposals for legislation

Question 6

How are money bills different?

Answer 6

• All bills follow a set pattern through parliament that involves debate, scrutiny and amendment. The only exception to this is money bills.
• A money bill is a bill that in the opinion of the House of Commons Speaker is concerned only with national taxation, public money or loans.
• A bill that is certified as a money bill and which has been passed by the Commons will become law after one month, with or without the approval of the House of Lords, under the terms of the Parliament Acts.

Question 7

The process of making a law - First Reading

Answer 7

• The formal introduction or reading of the bill’s title by the relevant government minister - there is no vote or debate at this stage; mainly a formality

Question 8

The process of making a law - Second Reading

Answer 8

• This is where the main debate on the principles of the bill takes place in the Commons chamber.
  Government defeats at this stage are very rare, the last occasion being the defeat of the Sunday Trading Bill in 1986
• The government minister responsible for the bill makes a statement supporting the bill, with comments from their shadow minister
• MPs debate the general principles of the Bill, rather than specific clauses, and then vote on progression of the Bill

Question 9

The process of making a law - Committee Stage

Answer 9

• Bills are sent to public bill committees (previously standing committees) where members consider the bill line by line, suggesting amendments and sometimes calling expert witnesses to help inform debate
• As the government always has a majority on the committee, major bill changes are unlikely at this stage, with each committee lasting only the lifetime of the bill it considers
• Although members are appointed by party whips, a 2015 Democratic Audit Report found that 63% of all MPs appointed to bill committees between 2000-2010 brought some form of relevant experience of expertise - 87% of amendments accepted by the government came from these MPs
• Can have anywhere from 16-50 members, but generally have around 20 members, majority party has a majority in the committee which is proportionate, with the minister involved joining the committee
• PBC’s can receive written evidence and conduct oral hearings to inform the bill
• Committee of the Whole House - takes place on the Commons floor, allowing any interested MP to take part; tend to be bills or great constitutional importance or involve and emergency, or for bills that are very uncontroversial and are easily passed

Question 10

The process of making a law - Report Stage

Answer 10

• During this stage, any amendments agreed in the committee stage are considered by the Commons, and accepted, rejected or changed
• There is also an opportunity for further amendments to be put to the vote
• Raise issues not previously discussed

Question 11

The process of making a law - Third Reading

Answer 11

• This is the final debate on the amended version of the bill; no further changes are permitted at this stage - unusual for defeat at this stage

Question 12

The process of making a law - The House of Lords Stages

Answer 12

• Assuming the bill has passed all Commons stages, the process is repeated in the Lords
• Any amendments made by the upper house only become part of the bill if they are accepted by the Commons, and a bill may go back and forth between the two houses, often dubbed ‘parliamentary ping-pong’
• The Prevention of Terrorism Act in 2005 was considered 5 times by the Lords and 4 times by the Commons in a 30 hour period until compromise was reached
• If agreement is not forthcoming, the Commons can invoke the Parliament Act, meaning that their version of the bill becomes law within a year; last used in 2004 to pass the Hunting Act, banning the hunting of wild mammals using dogs
• There are no public bill committees - they are scrutinised by the whole house or with a Grand Committee, which are similar, and spend almost double the amount of time debating bills than Commons, roughly 43.6% of the total time spent on business on the floor of the Lords is bills debate
• The Lords committee stage allows for as many amendments to be debated as they wish, as there is no limit on the peers involved
• In the Commons, 100 MPs can vote to bring a closure motion to close a debate, which is not present in the Lords, who debate for as long as feels appropriate
  Every word has to be agreed, and only when they are the bill can receive Royal Assent; any amendments made in Lords have to be approved by Commons before it is then assessed in the Lords
• Salisbury Convention - Lords should not block a manifesto bill, and if a bill reaches a stalemate in the ping-pong, the Bill fails in that session, which can be introduced in the next session and passed without Lords assent
• The bill can also be blocked for one year

Question 13

Public bills

Answer 13

• Public bills have a general effect and make changes affecting the whole population; there are two types:
  Government bills are introduced by the government
  1. Private Members Bills - introduced by backbenchers
  2. Private bills - makes changes to laws that only apply to specific individuals or organisations
• Outside groups can petition for a private bill when they would like to acquire powers that go beyond general law
• Hybrid Bills - have a general effect but some provisions single out particular individuals or groups
• Consultation process - where outside groups are invited to contribute as the government decides what to include in the bill; informs the birth of a bill
• Green papers - more open to influence
• White papers - more certain, more focused plans
• Any type of bill is introduced in Commons, and non-money bills are introduced in Lords too

Question 14

Private Member Bills

Answer 14

• Three PMB’s - Ballot bills (most successful), 10 Minute Rule Bills (some chance) and Presentation Bills (almost no chance) - these are ways of introducing a bill
• Ballot Bills, most chance of success - at the beginning of the parliamentary year, all MPs who wish to introduce a PMB (Private Member Bills) sign a book and enter their names for what is essentially a lottery in which 20 names are selected at random
• The order in which the names are drawn is the order of priority for timetabling their bill for debate, with the final name having top priority
• 13 Fridays in each session are reserved for PMB debates, with the first 7 being used for second readings
• 10-Minute Rule Bills - MPs enter a weekly ballot and, if successful, are able to make a short speech of no more than 10 minutes outlining their proposed bill after Question Time on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
• If the House agrees, the Bill will have its first reading
• MPs generally view this process as a way to raise awareness of an issue as very few of these bills receive royal assent, and find it a more effective way of catching the attention of MPs of ministers and backbenchers who were still in the chamber following QT
• Presentation bills are used to raise debate about a particular issue and almost never receive Royal Assent
• Members introduce the title of their Bill but, unlike with 10 minute rule bills, they are not allowed to speak about it
• While the Bill has been formally introduced to Parliament, it stands little chance of progressing to the next stage unless the government takes an interest in it

Question 15

Secondary Legislation

Answer 15

• Primary legislation, or Acts of Parliament, grant ministers / public bodies power to make secondary legislation, or Statutory Instruments
• Parliament has varying degrees of control over the thousands of Statutory Instruments made every year, with each Act of Parliament that delegates power to make secondary legislation will specify the particular procedure that ministers have to use
• There are two main procedures - negative and affirmative

Question 16

Secondary legislation - The negative procedure

Answer 16

Negative procedure:

• SI is laid out before both Houses and becomes law on a stated date unless either House passes a motion (known as a ‘prayer’) within 40 days, that the SI be annulled
• SIs are only debated for a maximum of 90 minutes in the Commons if an MP requests a debate, but as there is not time set on the timetable for such debates, and the government largely controls the timetable, these requests often fall through
• 2015-2016 session; 585 SI’s (77.2%) were subject to the negative scrutiny procedure

Question 17

Secondary legislation - The affirmative procedure

Answer 17

Affirmative procedure:

• SI is laid before Parliament and must be approved by both Houses before it can come into effect
• In the Commons, the SI is sent to a Delegated Legislation Committee; temporary committees that can debate the SI for a maximum of 90 mins
• The HoC then votes on the SI without any debate beforehand on another day
• Peers debate the SI on the floor or in a Grand Committee
• 2015-2016; 151 SI’s (19.9%) were subject to the affirmative procedure

Question 18

EVEL - English Votes for English Laws

Answer 18

• The West-Lothian Question; the debate over plans to devolve power to the other countries raised questions about the involvement of the countries in English affairs; English MPs couldn’t vote on Scottish, Irish or Welsh bills but devolved MPs could vote on English issues
• In October 2015, the UK parliament approved changes to the House of Commons Standing Orders, the written rules which govern how parliament conducts is business, to introduce a new system of ‘English Votes for English Laws’
• These new rules, gave English, or English and Welsh MPs, two opportunities to veto all, or particular clauses, of bills that only affect England, or England and Wales
• The speaker decides if a bill’s clause contains clauses that concern only England or only England and Wales and then a Legislative Grand Committee is formed of English or English and Welsh MPs who must approve a consent motion before the bill can progress to the third reading
• When the Common considers any Lords amendments that only concern England or England and Wales the bill must secure a double majority in both the House of Commons and a majority of English and Welsh MPs

Question 19

Secondary legislation - what are statutory instruments?

Answer 19

• These are provisions within primary legislation for the relevant minister to introduce new clauses or changes, mainly for the sake of efficiency and is a minister-made law, not a parliament-passed law.
• Example - The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 allows the government to more easily add new drugs to the list of banned substances as information about their harm becomes more apparent.
• Around 3,500 are passed annually - this is a much higher amount than parliamentary Acts

How are they passed?

• They are scrutinised by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments, made up of both MPs and peers.
• It is one of the only committees that does not have a government majority, with the newly appointed committee at the start of 2020 having only 6 Conservatives out of a total 14 members.
• The role of this committee is to scrutinise the SI to ensure its legality and does not go beyond the powers specified in the parent Act.
• Parliament must be asked for approval on all SI’s, but is unable to amend them - overall, scrutiny of secondary legislation is considerably less than for primary legislation.

Question 20

Backbench and MPs legislation

Answer 20

When and why did the system for drafting Private Members’ Bills (PMBs) begin?
- The current system began in the 1940s, enshrining the notion that some parliamentary time should be made available for legislation by individual MPs and peers, providing backbenchers with some freedom to respond to public concern or to reflect their own policy concerns.

What sorts of issues get raised in PMBs?
- Issues that are not primarily political, or issues presented when the MPs own party is divided, making it difficult for a leader to present a united front. They often raise emotive issues that the majority party may not have wanted to present in its manifesto due to potential backlash.
Whilst they are not intended to be a conventional way of checking and scrutinising the government, PMBs allow individual MPs to influence parliament and the nation.

Give some examples of successful PMBs
Abortion Act 1967 and the abolition of capital punishment in 1965. These were mainly passed as matters of conscience which the government at the time largely backed but was reluctant to propose an official government bill on.

Other examples:

1. Stalking Protection Act 2019 -> Sir Greg Knight
2. Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2019 -> Geoffrey Robinson
3. Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration etc) Act 2019 -> Loughton Tim

Question 21

Ballot Bills

Answer 21

How many sittings each year are put aside for PMBs?
13 Friday sittings (65 hours) are set aside in the Commons each year for consideration of PMBs. Priority or the use of the first 7 sitting Friday’s is given to ballot bills, the best known form of PMB.

Which type of PMB has the best chance of being passed?
Ballot Bills - best chance of being properly debated in the chamber. Each backbench MP who wishes to introduce a law can enter a ballot annually with 20 names drawn out.

What types of bills might MPs introduce?
Sometimes, if they do not have a specific bill in mind, they may be approached by pressure groups and others eager to offer suggestions - some choose to adopt a government ‘handout’ bill instead of generating their own legislative proposals. These generally make technical changes or discrete additions to existing laws, acting as bills that the government may not have been able to find time for in its own legislative programming, or those they do not wish to put through parliament as primary legislation for political reasons. This legislation is handed to an MP to take through as a PMB; being a handout law, they have a higher chance of becoming law due to their government support.

Question 22

Ballot Bills pt2

Answer 22

What gives Ballot Bills the best chance of being passed?
Being uncontroversial and having no government opposition; if they are, they can easily be blocked by MPs speaking on them until time runs out

Explain how the ‘Turing Bill’ of 2016 was blocked?
The government withdrew its initial support for the bill for several reasons, with the government minister speaking on the bill for 25 minutes and thus reaching the time limit allotted for debate, and so the bill failed to progress.

How was a bill on ‘upskirting’ blocked in 2018 and what subsequently happened?
Conservative MP Christopher Chope was a singular objector to the bill, enough to block it. Thi move was criticised by MPs from all parties, and a government backed bill on the same topic was subsequently introduced and passed.

Other examples:

1. Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 -> Chris Bryant
2. Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2019 -> Chris Loder
3. Prisons (Substance Testing) Act 2019 -> Dame Cheryl Gillian
4. Education and Training (Welfare of Children) Act 2019 -> Mary Kelly Fox

Question 23

Ten Minute Rule Bills

Answer 23

• Policy aspirations put into legislative language in order to secure a 10-minute speaking slot during primetime in the House of Commons Chamber after Question Time on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

What do they allow backbenchers to do?
They are therefore mostly important as an opportunity for backbenchers to raise issues of concern often relating to their constituencies as opposed to passing actual legislation. Party whips decide the slots, which somewhat undermines the independence of individual MPss in the process.

Ten Minute Rule Bills rarely progress, provide an example of one that did.
Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act 2017 - created a new legal status of guardianship of the affairs of a missing person, allowing someone to act in the missing persons best interests after they have been gone for 90 days or more, originally introduced as a ten minute rule bill by Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake and subsequently passed in law.

Question 24

Presentation Bills

Answer 24

• Any MP that is permitted to introduce a bill of their choice having given prior notice to the Public Bill Office. Presentation bills are formally ‘presented’ during a Friday sitting only and only after all the ballot bills on the order paper have been presented. The MP presenting the bill does not give a speech and there is no debate on the proposals, and they can be used to address discrete, non-controversial policy issues and to resolve anomalies in the law.

Why are Presentation Bills less useful than Ballot or Ten minute Rule Bills?
However, with no speech or debate attached to them, they are less useful to MPs than ballot bills or Ten minute rule bills.

Which factors are important to allow MPs to introduce and pass (less frequently) legislation

• Being uncontroversial
• Getting lucky in being one of the 20 MPs successful in the ballot bills draw
• Having government backing
• Exceptional circumstances, such as the 2018-19 Brexit debate, when the government temporarily lost control of the parliamentary agenda

Question 25

Indirect backbench pressure on government legislation

Answer 25

• One lesser known way especially for backbenchers from the governing party to influence government legislation is by applying pressure before a bill ever reaches the floor of the Commons. Governments are often keen to buy off rebels in advance and may make changes to the bill before it is first debated.

Can you give examples of this?
In 2011, plans to privatise some English forests faced major crossbench opposition along with public outcry forced the government to abandon its plans entirely. Sometimes, the government introduces legislation specifically as a result of pressure from its own backbenchers - such as in 2006, Labour backbenchers successfully persuaded Tony Blair’s government to bring the Corporate Manslaughter Bill.

Order paper -
List indicating the order to which business is to be conducted during that day’s sitting of the House of Commons

Question 26

Representative Function - the positives

Answer 26

• All parts of the UK are represented geographically through 650 constituencies that are roughly equally sized and whose boundaries are drawn up Independent of Party bias by the Boundary Commission.
• A wide range of parties is represented in the Commons, so ensuring a range of political opinions are represented.
• The commons is becoming more diverse particularly in terms of gender, race and sexuality. A record 220 women were elected in 2019. A total of 6% of MPs elected in 2019 openly identified as LGBTQ+, substantially higher than the 2% of the general population who identify as LGBTQ+
• MPs have a range of wider interests and specialist policy areas that they represent informally and speak about in debates or committees. These can include such diverse areas as disability, animal welfare and football.

Question 27

Representative Function - the negatives

Answer 27

• Women remain significantly underrepresented. While just over half of all voters are female, only 34% of 2019 intake of MPs were women
• The first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system favours the two largest parties and regionally concentrated parties such as the SNP. By contrast, it severely underrepresents parties such as the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and UKIP
• MPs increasingly come from backgrounds and have life experiences that are unrepresentative of the country as a whole. To take one example, a Sutton Trust report published after the 2019 election found that 29% of MPs were privately educated compared with 7% of the population as a whole.
• Not all constituencies are in fact equal in population size. There are nearly six times more voters in the most populous constituency compared with the least populous.

Question 28

How MPs represent people - part-time representatives

Answer 28

• Many MPs continue to undertake jobs outside of parliament once elected, with around 18% of the 2017-2019 parliament having a second job
• These jobs have to be declared in the Register of Member’s Interests for transparency and the avoidance of clear conflicts of interest
• Examples range from working healthcare, to lawyers, to serving as company directors or doing their previous occupation in a limited capacity
• When giving evidence in an inquiry that may be involved with the outside interest of MPs, Maria Coulfield, who continued to work as a nurse, stated that she represented a marginal constituency and needed to work a certain amount of hours annually to retain her registration
• It is a significant part of evaluating MPs as representatives, as it raises questions about how effectively they can represent their constituents, if they have broader life experience and perspective than career politicians, issues about whether it is a problem to have a second job if it has been declared, and that the nature of the electoral system allows constituents to decide if having a second job is fair, and MPs being paid a relatively large salary (£80,000 as of 2020) means that it may not be necessary to have a second income that takes time away from their role as an MP
• Generally, the British public, according to a YouGov survey, think it is acceptable for MPs to have second jobs that do not interfere with their political job, or which may be impacted by their political alignment

Question 29

How MPs represent people - representatives of particular issues

Answer 29

• MPs frequently informally represent particular causes or interests that cut across geography and party - these range from sport to prevention of child abuse and any other issues
• MPs oten join all-party group campaigns comprising other MPs from a range of parties who share similar interests and concerns
• Among the hundreds of all-party groups currently registered in parliament are those focused on diverse areas such as pigeon racing, darts, independent education and Scottish whisky

Question 30

How MPs represent people - MPs as constituency problem-solvers

Answer 30

• It is also important to note that MPs undertake a lot of casework for their constituents, irrespective of who they voted for in the election
• MPs after election should represent all constituents, with most holding regular local surgeries, usually via appointment, to listen to the concerns of the constituents
• These can relate to a wide range of issues, such as housing, immigration, status or miscarriages of justice
  Whilst MPs do not normally have the power to bring about instant remedies, they often raise these issues with the local council or relevant government department, or in a Commons debate, which is known as the redress of grievances
• This involves a large volume of workload, with a MP in 2010 calculating that in their first 10 months as an MP, they received over 38,400 pieces of communication, o which 24,000 were emails, 9,600 letters and 4,800 telephone class
• On top of this, they also had 2,183 individual constituent’s cases, with MPs typically employing constituency caseworkers out of their parliamentary allowance to handle much of this work
• The type and number of issues varies partly according to constituency; MPs representing deprived inner-city areas are more likely to receive large numbers of requests for help with housing and social benefits
• In the pandemic, this workload has increased to an unbearable amount, and many MPs and their constituency caseworkers are struggling to deal with immediate issues as well as long term problems

Question 31

Theories of representation - The Burkean or Trustee Theory

Answer 31

Definition:
Theory that argues elected officials are purely representatives of their voters. Once elected they are free to act in the interests of their electors as they see fit

Explanation of the theory:
The Burkean Theory, created by Bristol MP Edmund Burke, stated that representatives should take in the views of their constituency, but also employ their own personal judgment. Burke saw this theory as the opposite of the delegate theory which stated MPs should just mirror the views of their constituency. This theory has been significantly weakened in recent years through the practice of strong party ties and the parliamentary whipping system.

Question 32

Examples of the Trustee Theory

Answer 32

1. During the Brexit campaign MP Nick Boles, former conservative MP for Grantham and Stamford, represented a constituency who wanted to leave, but he personally wanted to remain. This caused him to vote against his party in many brexit votes, and was heavily criticised for putting his perceived national interest in front of the opinions of his party and constituency.
2. Votes of conscience - In 2013 there was a vote on gay marriage, which conservative Prime Minister David Cameron backed for voting, and gave government time to debate debate it. Half of the conservative party went on to vote against the bill. MPs felt as though they could vote according to their conscience on this matter, as they weren’t voting against any manifesto pledges.

Question 33

Theories of Representation - the Delegate Theory

Answer 33

Definition:
Theory that views MPs as being bound by the wishes of their constituents - what the constituents want, the constituents get from their MP.

Explanation of the theory:
The delegate theory of representation states that elected officials are simply ‘mouthpieces’ for their constituents - in practice, it is the hardest theory to abide by as an MP, as there are no solid methods of knowing the majority views of all their constituents on any single issue (for example, they may use focus groups or volume of emails received, but there is no set or easy way to understand what all their constituents want on all issues, and it becomes more of a problem if problems causes an even divide)

Question 34

Examples of the Delegate Theory

Answer 34

1. In 2015, Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith promised voters in Richmond Park he would resign if the government backed a third runway at Heathrow - he stuck to his word, and when the government came out in favour of the idea, he resigned from his seat in 2016 and stood as an independent in a by-election. He lost his seat to the LibDems
2. In contrast, Stephen Lloyd, a LibDem MP for Eastbourne (Leave seat) promised to support Brexit in the Commons if re-elected in 2017 in order to honour the referendum result both nationally and within his own constituency - against his own views and official party policy, he stuck to the pledge in the division lobbies. He even resigned as a LibDem whip in the process, and lost his seat in the 2019 election.

These examples do however suggest, superficially, that votes do not necessarily reward MPs acting as delegates who keep to their word.

Question 35

Theories of Representation - The Mandate Theory

Answer 35

Definition: Arguably the most prevalent representation theory in modern UK politics. It suggests that MPs are primarily in their position to represent and carry out their party’s policies and manifesto

Explanation of the theory:
The Mandate theory advocated that elected officials are primarily there to represent and carry out their party’s policies and manifesto. The argument goes that it is the party and not the personality of an individual MP that secures their election. They therefore have a duty of party loyalty once in parliament. The strength of this theory is borne out by several examples of MPs being elected for a particular party, leaving it mid-term and standing again in the same constituency either for another party or as an independent. They nearly always go on to lose.

Situations or issues often arise during a parliamentary term for which there was no manifesto pledge. In March 2003, 139 Labour MPs rebelled against Tony Blair over the invasion of Iraq. Arguably, they were at liberty to exercise their own judgement, given such a policy was not part of Labour’s 2001 manifesto.

Question 36

Examples of the Mandate Theory

Answer 36

1. In 2019, Frank Field, the long-serving and highly respected MP for Birkenhead, stood as an independent having left LAbour, and was defeated in this very safe Labour seat.
2. The same was also true for former Tory MP Anne Milton, who stood for re-election in Guildford as an independent in the same election.
3. A rare exception was Douglas Carswell who, having been elected as Conservative MP for Clacton, defected to UKIP in 2014. He resigned and went on to retain his seat in both the by-election and the 2015 general election standing for UKIP. This suggests the mandate theory does have its limits, although arguably the Clacton electorate, as a strong Leave seat, was voting for the same policies and the same person to represent them in Parliament.

Overall, all three theories of representation influence how MPs vote in Parliament, but given the dominance and strength of party politics, the mandate model usually, but not always, prevails. When it does not, it normally reflects strong local feeling that is at odds with the MP’s own party, or that a controversial issue has emerged since the last general election.

Question 37

What has happened to the amount of PMB’s?

Answer 37

• A clear trend has been discovered in the declining success of PMB, suggesting that although the backbenches have recently been seen to be at their most rebellious with Government Bills, but are less successful pursuing their own legislation
• According to a factsheet produced by the House of Commons Information Office, there was a steep drop in the number of PMB reaching Royal Assent in the years since 2000 - the BBC also reported that only 7 PMB successfully became law
• This fact sheet also suggested that the 1960s was the decade with the most impactful PMBs, with a record number passing, but also having some of the most significant in history, including the abolition of the death penalty, the Abortion Act and the Sexual Offenses Act (decriminalises same-sex acts for men 21 years or older)

Question 38

What factors might explain the declining number of successful PMBs?

Answer 38

• One argument is that the 1960s bills were heavily supported by the government who were happy or controversial issues to be tackled by the backbenchers; in contrast, the current government is less willing to give time and support to PMBs, and instead have controlled the timetable more, dealing with controversial issues by offering a free vote (MPs are not pressured by the party whips on matters of conscience
• The Coalition Agreement contains a promise to offer a free vote on the repeal of the ban on fox hunting in the 2004 Hunting Act which perhaps reduces the likelihood that backbench MOs will pursue such a change via PMBs

1) Friday sitting times - many MPs travel back to their constituencies on Fridays and so attendance to PMBs debates can be very poor, which can also be a useful tactic to opponents of PMBs; if fewer than 40 MPs are in attendance to vote on a motion then the Bill is deferred to the next PMB day, because of the Commons quorum of 40 members (minimum number of politicians which must be present for a vote to be considered valid
- The Lords quorum is lower, at 30 peers, and so if opponents call for a motion that ‘the House do now sit in private’ at the start of the day, a motion that prevents visitors, the PMBs will be delayed if less than 40 MPs are in the chamber

Question 39

What factors might explain the declining number of successful PMBs?

Answer 39

2) Lack of timetabling makes filibustering easy - only the first PMB is guaranteed to be debated on one of the allocated 13 Fridays, and so only the amount of PMBs that can be discussed are; if there is opposition to a PMB, an MP can therefore simply waste time to prevent its debate or vote, with only unopposed bills at 2.30pm will go through to a second reading
- If the debate continues until 2.30pm, it will be rescheduled, with the only way of preventing this delay being bringing a closure motion which ends the debate and triggers a vote if successful, but this closure motion requires the support of 100 MPs, and this is extremely unlikely on Fridays

3) Public bill committees - only one PBC can be active at one time to consider PMBs, and so they can be held up in a queue, reducing their chance of success, and the government decides whether to table a motion on establishing a second PBC to consider an additional PMB, giving the government considerable power over the success of backbench legislation

Question 40

Why are PMBs important?

Answer 40

• Offer for the opportunity for issues to be debated and legislated on which the government may not want to tackle directly
• For MPs to perform their function as representatives of their constituents, with it being arguably vital for them to represent their constituents on Government bills, they should be able to introduce legislation which their own constituents are lobbying for
• Even though PMBs have little to no chance of success, they are still a vital way of representatives introducing issues that concern their constituents into the debate and conversation of Parliament, one of which is the Disability Discrimination Act (1995); although many bills of a similar nature failed in the years before, they triggered debate and forced the government to address the issue - they might attract interest one day might lead to greater results

Question 41

What are the main criticisms of PMBs?

Answer 41

• Small chance of success despite their prominence in raising issues in parliament and generating significant media coverage and comment
• Members of the public who do not understand the odds stacked against PMBs, may be upset that the bills fail, and it may be very disheartening for supporters of the bill to see it not progress past the first reading
• Some argue that these barriers are necessary, as it is arguable that although the PMBs may have been lobbied for, PMBs lack the mandate that Government Bills gain through appearing in the election manifesto
  Similarly, whilst it is easy to hold a government to account for unpopular Bills in the next election, the accountability for a PMB which passes on a free vote is perhaps less obvious
• Whilst PMBs appear to be an excellent way for the backbenchers to take actions which might not have been implemented by the government, there are actually many instances where the government can use PMBs to progress their own legislative aims, such as through the use a ‘Hand-out Bill’ - PMBs may therefore give the appearance of the backbenchers having an impact on the Parliamentary agenda, they may actually be another instance of the influence of the executive

Question 42

Bill Committees as part of the legislative function

Answer 42

• The detail of bills is usually strongly influenced by the will of the committee, even if the government majority in the committee prevents major changes to the nature of the bill
• Bill committees usually consist of around 12 MPs, representing at least parliamentary parties with a government majority, along with a chairperson
• The committee does a lot of work before the bill returns to the Commons for the final reading, with every word in the bill being scrutinised and examined, with the committee making suggestions and amendments at each point
• The committee looking at the Environment Bill, for example, held 12 evidence sessions, hearing from a wide range of experts like Greenpeace, Unite and the Federation of Small Businesses, before moving to line-by-line analysis
• This part leads to a major amendments, and although the main principle is rarely changed, the government often accepts suggestions that come from the committees
• The line-by-line analysis is the part that takes the most time and is essential to the legislative role, allowing MPs of all parties to work together and make a difference to the laws that are passed