Ballot
Bills can also be brought forward by a single M.P. the time set aside by the house for consideration of private members legislation is limited by standing order no. 13. There is always a huge amount of pressure on the time available for debating bills introduced by back-bench members. A very important part of this time is used establishing a ballot that is held at the beginning of each session. The 20 successful members stand at the front of the private members queue in the order in which they were drawn. They now have a big advantage over the other private members who also wish to introduce bills of their own. Private members who have gained a place on the ballot can put their bills down for discussion on particular days, now exclusively Fridays.
Bills which are brought in under the ballot procedure especially those brought in by members placed high in the ballot are normally very serious attempts at changing the law in a well defined field. Because of this, some bills can contain very controversial suggestions, of which the private member may feel very strongly about. An example of this is The Abortion Act 1967.
The ten members placed highest in the ballot may claim up to £200 in expenses whilst drafting their bill.
The Ten Minute Rule
These are not always serious attempts at legislation. This path is used much more as a means of making a point that the law needs to be changed in a particular field. The ten minute rule allows a brief speech in favour of the bill by the member that introduced it. It also gives members a chance to test parliamentary opinion on a subject that they want to make legislation on. The ten minute also allows a short speech by a member opposing the legislation. It also allows members to ask the house permission to introduce the bill. If the house agrees it will get its first reading, if not then the bill cannot be introduced.
Members of parliament have a lot of control when drafting private members bills. It is a good way for them to get their views across especially when using the ten minute rule. Though attempts at private bills are not necessarily in the interest of the public and just views that the M.P in question feels particularly strongly about. I do not think that this is a particularly wise idea as they would have to much influence in making laws that they want.
First Reading in the House of Commons (public bills)
On the day of the presentation a dummy copy of the bill is placed on the table. When it has been presented it is allocated a particular number that is shown on the bottom left hand corner. Each time that the bill is re-printed it is given a new number. There is normally no debating on the bill, but a vote will take place either a verbal one, where each member says ‘aye’ or ‘no’, or a formal one where they are asked to leave the chamber and walk back in through one of two doors, one saying yes to the bill and one saying no.
Second Reading in the House of Commons (public bills)
This in when the main debate takes place. This is the time when the house considers the principle and main points of the bill. The second reading is the first stage where the government bill can be defeated. The house votes in the same way as the first reading.
Committee Stage (public bills)
After the second reading the bill is moved into the committee stage. This is usually taken part in a standing committee. A standing committee has about 18 members and reflects the party composition of the house. At least one minister from the government department that is in charge of the bill will be on the committee. Members nominated on the committee will normally have special knowledge of the particular area that the bill is dealing with. The committee will examine each clause and direction of the bill, agreeing on parts of the bill that need to be taken out. New clauses may also be added.
Report Stage(public bills)
At this stage the house may make further amendments to the bill. This stage provides an opportunity to those who are not on the standing committee to move amendments to the bill. The amendments can be debated and either accepted or rejected
Third Reading in the House of Commons (public bills)
This is the final reading in the House of Commons usually taken straight after the conclusion of the report. It allows the house to take an overview of the bill. No amendments can be made at this stage and debated on the third reading are normally very short.
House of Lords Stages and Amendments (public bills)
Once it has passed its third reading in the House of Commons, the bill is sent to the House of Lords. They proceedings are very similar except that after the second reading, bills are usually committed to a committee of the whole house, amendments can be made at the third reading and debate on amendments is unrestricted.
If the House of Lords amend a House of Commons bill their amendments are printed and thought about by the Commons. They may either agree to the amendments, agree to them with further amendments or they can disagree.
Royal Assent (public bills)
When everything has been agreed by the two houses, the bill is submitted to the queen for royal assent. After royal assent is given the bill becomes an act.
I would say that the relationship that M.Ps have in the formation of public bills is very involved. They draw up the bills and also decide whether they are agreeing on it. They can also change a bill to suit their needs. As a public bill has a very long and tedious path to go through, going through the same long process in each house it is greatly scrutinised. This could be seen as a good thing because the bill would have been thoroughly checked, but many things in the bill could have been altered therefore possibly changing the issue that the bill was trying to improve in the first place.
Pressure groups in the formation of legislation
A pressure group can be described as an organisational group that does not put up candidates for election, but seeks to influence government policy and legislation. In Britain the number of political parties is very small, whereas there are thousands of pressure groups. An example of a pressure group would be the institute for public policy and research (IPPR). This particular pressure group has links to the labour government and regular contact with cabinet ministers.
Although most pressure groups have little contact with the government, their influence is great. They obtain much support through media coverage and other such campaigns. They are so influential because they have the support of the ordinary person and normally the population in general. Such a wide base of support may intimidate M.Ps to take action and comply to the pressure groups wishes, or the pressure group can simply ask members of parliament questions and propose new ideas for legislation.
Pressure groups can also go down the route of seeking a private bill. This is where a person or organisation who desires the bill can start a petition. Though these are presented to parliament only in limited circumstances and may not even be heard.
I think that pressure groups do have a very influential part in the formation of legislation. Especially when a Member of Parliament wishes to involve themselves to try and look good to the general population (for example before an election etc) when a popular pressure group proposes a new legislation.
Political Parties
A political party is a group of people who have the same view of what laws should be and how the country should be run. An example of a political party would be the labour party, who are in power at the moment.
When a new government gets together a political party they will have a report called a manifesto that states all of the reforms that they want to carry out if elected. They firstly go to parliamentary session where they announce these ideas.
Political parties rely a great deal on media coverage during their campaign. They announce to the public what they propose to do if elected. But to create these legislations they need to be elected.
I think that political parties have a great deal of influence over the formation because they, to use a crude term, have bully boy techniques. They can promise the public new laws and the opposition, possibly wanting to keep up, changes the law before them. This means that they may get their own way without even being elected.
Conclusion.
In conclusion I would say that there are many different factors in the making and passing of legislation. All of these different groups influence it; it is not just a one way system. Though I think that this is good because it allows everybody to get there own views across and to try and change a law they may find oppressive.
