Legislative process, debates and opposition

• How a Bill is made into UK law

  • Bill starts in the HOC
  • First reading - MPs read what it's about
  • Second reading - bill discussed in parliament
  • Committee stage - examined by a public bill committee
  • Report stage - comes back to the chamber
  • Third reading - chamber looks at the revised bill and has a final debate
• How a Bill is made into UK law

  • Bill is then sent to the HOL
  • Same process as the HOC
  • Send it back to the commons if there's any amendments and the HOC sends it back
  • Bill is passed through royal consent
• Role of opposition

  • Provide scrutiny and reasoned criticism of gov policies and actions in debates
  • Suggest amendments to bills
  • Argue for alternatives to suit other parties
  • Provides a gov in waiting with the shadow cabinet
  • Nominate topics of debate in 20 days in each parliamentary session
• Influence of parliament on gov decisions

  • Committee reports
  • Debates and questions
  • BackBench rebellions in the commons
  • Lobbying
• Limits of parliament influence

  • Governments can ignore reports from select committees
  • Gov majority's see off BackBench rebellions
  • Party whips ensure party discipline
  • Gov is in control of most of the parliamentary year
• Party discipline in the commons

  • Parties use a whip system to enforce party discipline and minimise internal dissent
  • Most governments have majorities to defeat BackBench rebellions
  • Party discipline is needed during a minority or small majority government to get legislation through
  • Important votes are three line whips when mod must turn up and vote the way the leader wished
• Government control of civil servants

  • Traditionally, the government had a lot of control over the civil servant
  • Osmotherly rules allowed plenty of scope for senior civil servants to be evasive and vague in their answers
  • But they were revised in 2014 and are demanded to be as helpful as possible
• Osmotherly rules

  • Guidance given to civil servants and other government officials appearing before select committees
• Three line whips

  • Parliamentary votes when MPs must follow the voting orders of whips
  • Failure to do so would lead to a resignation or dismissal