Pressure groups are another influence on Parliament when it comes to creating legislation. Pressure groups are a group of people who share the same views on a particular issue. They work together to convince Parliament to change the law to their "ideal". An example of a pressure group that is formed for one aim is that of villagers fighting for a by-pass. The group will dissolve as soon as the by-pass is built or is refused after every possibility had been researched. Some groups however have a wider idea on how to reform laws, and stick together until their aims have been achieved, however long this may take. These tend to pursue high profile campaigns such as hunting or vivisection. This kind of pressure group finds it useful to attach itself to a permanent body who shares the same views on this area. Pressure groups collect information and formulate arguments in favour of their point of view. They often seek public support by raising public awareness of the issues involved, they hold meetings, mail leaflets advertise or embark on demonstrations. Pressure groups use a range of tactics, which include lobbying, organising petitions, encouraging boycotts, informing MP's of the opposition of certain laws. The targets for pressure groups are politicians, the purpose of getting widespread support is to convince the politicians that there is a considerable amount of support for the opinions of the pressure group. Pressure groups deal with a range of issues including hunting, animal rights, human rights, the environment and health issues. Well-organised groups can be successful; for example the Poll Tax was removed because groups made it unworkable. Large pressure groups such as Greenpeace have raised environmental issues to a point that no government can ignore them when considering policies. Pressure groups tend to be very persuasive, as the issue is something they feel incredibly strongly about, and represent the population. But all pressure groups can do is get the support for their cause, they have no powers at all.
Another influence on the way the government makes legislation is their own political considerations. A decision taken by the House of Commons is not always the best solution because the politicians are always thinking about being re-elected. A government is unlikely to make a very unpopular law as it means they will not be re-elected. A government will make what it sees as necessary but unpopular changes to law at the beginning of it five-year term because there is no need to have votes during the first year or so. As the election draws closer a government will become more careful when changing the laws; they will only create "popular" laws. A clear example of this trend is seen with the budget. Tax rises are generally seen during the early stages of the term and tax cuts made before elections. When an election campaign begins each political party produces a manifesto in which they tell the public what the government would do if they got into power. These manifestos are rarely stuck to and this is the major criticism of the government policy. An example of an issue dealt with is the manifesto proposal for Judicial Appointments in 1997; this was never fulfilled by the government.
- Describe and evaluate the process by which the UK Parliament creates statutes. (15 marks)
The Parliament in the UK makes all of the national laws. Parliament consists of three parts: House of Commons, House of Lords, and the Queen. For a Bill to become and Act of Parliament it must pass through the House of Commons and the House of Lords and then receive the Royal Assent.
The House of Commons has 659 members, each of whom is elected, every five years. The House of Lords consists of life peers, worthy politicians, scientists, and members of other fields.
Public Bills are bills, which as law will affect the whole country. A bill is produced after a green paper, suggesting changes is sent out to local groups for approval and criticisms, and then a white paper, which makes firm proposals for the changes in law. The Bill is sent to one of the houses, normally the House of Commons and goes through a process of readings.
The First Reading is when the title of the Bill is read out and a date is set for the Second Reading. This stage is now formality.
The Second Reading is when the minister responsible for the Bill explains its purpose, there then follows a general debate on the Bill and the House decides in principle whether to legislate in this way on the subject.
The next stage is the Committee stage. This is a committee of around 18 members with knowledge and understanding of the issues involved in the Bill. The job of this committee is to look at the Bill in detail. They read through the Bill line by line and decide whether to make amendments to the Bill.
After the committee stage comes the report stage where the committee reports back to the House on the amendments that chose to make, these amendments can be accepted or rejected by the House.
The Third Reading is the final stage in the House of Commons. No changes can be made to the Bill at this stage but errors can be corrected.
After the Bill has been through these stages in the House of Commons it will go through the same stages in the House of Lords. Any changes that the House of Lords suggests must be approved by the House of Commons. The function of the House of Lords is to try to get the House of Commons to reconsider certain aspects of the Bill. If a compromise is not made after a year the House of Commons can send the Bill for Royal Assent anyway.
The monarch does not undertake the Royal Assent anymore. The Royal Assent is traditionally not refused, but instead is given because the Bill will only reach this stage after it is precisely defined and approved by the country. The fact that the Royal Assent still exists, even though it is no longer the monarch who approves the Bill, shows the power which exists historically. Only after these stages have been completed does a Bill become a statute.
