Transcript Campaigning in Parliament - Voluntary Action Islington

Parliament and your
campaign
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This session will cover:
A brief recap of Parliament’s role
MPs and Members of the House of Lords
What MPs and Lords can do in Parliament
Draft Bills, Private Members’ Bills and
Government Bills
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A service from the Houses of Parliament
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Politically neutral
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Aim is to increase knowledge and engagement
with work and processes of Parliament
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Not an alternative to MPs
House of Commons
The
Monarch
House of Lords
Conservative - 303
Labour - 255
Lib Dem - 57
DUP - 8
SNP - 6
Sinn Fein - 5
Plaid Cymru - 3
SDLP - 3
Green - 1
Respect - 1
Alliance - 1
Independent - 3
Speaker - 1
Deputy Speakers - 3
Makes and passes laws
(Legislation)
Holds Government to
account
Enables the Government
to set taxes
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Your MP’s contact details will be available via the
Parliament website: www.parliament.uk
You can also find them by calling the House of
Commons Information Office on 020 7219 4272
Or at your town hall or local library
Many MPs will have a contact address and
number in the constituency
Emily Thornberry, MP for
Islington South and Finsbury
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The second Chamber, also known as the
revising House
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No party, or combination of parties has an
overall majority in the House of Lords
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There are 179 Cross-Benchers in the Lords,
who are independent of party
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There are 811 members
of whom 762 are eligible:
◦ 645 are Life Peers
◦ 92 are Hereditary Peers
◦ 25 are C of E Bishops
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Members of the House of Lords do not have
constituencies, so in theory, you can contact any
member
You will want to identify Members of the Lords
who will support your campaign
Biographies of all Members of the Lords are
available at www.parliament.uk
Hansard – the official report of proceedings in the
Lords – is a good place to look for examples of
Peers’ interests and causes
The 10 Downing Street
website has a full list of
all Government Ministers
There are links to each
Department’s website,
which give details of
Ministers with their
specific responsibilities
www.number10.gov.uk
Can be used to:
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Obtain information –
stats, policies, positions
Press for action
Raise constituency
issues
Challenge Government
policy
Must have factual basis
and relate to the
running of a
Government
Department
Opposition day debates
 Adjournment debates
(HoC)
 Back-Bench business
debates (HoC)
 Questions for Short
Debate (HoL)
Allows MPs and Members
of the HoL to:
 Raise constituency issues
or matters of regional,
national or international
significance
 Get the issue to the
attention of a relevant
minister
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Set up to scrutinise specific
areas of work and
government departments
Work carried out through
public inquiries
Groups and individuals
submit evidence to
inquiries
Inquiry report created and
usually passed to relevant
government department
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You can contact the staff of Select Committees directly
You can ask them about forthcoming or planned inquiries
You can suggest areas that the Committee might like to look
into
If an inquiry is taking place, you can contact Committee staff
for advice on preparing written evidence
If you are called to give oral evidence, you can contact
Committee staff for help to prepare
Select Committees can do follow-up inquiries after the
Government have responded to their reports
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Green Papers: general discussion
documents produced when
Government is considering a new
law
White Papers: produced by the
Government with details of future
policy on a particular subject –very
close to what will be in a Bill
They have no legal force
Consultations may be carried out
on both
Parliament will conduct prelegislative scrutiny of any draft Bill
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The Government publishes
some Bills in draft form
before they are introduced
formally in Parliament
They receive prelegislative scrutiny in
Parliament
The draft Bill will be
considered either by an
existing Select Committee
or a specially convened ad
hoc Committee
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All legislation proposed by the Government must
be scrutinised by both Houses of Parliament
Each Bill goes through the same stages in each
House - First Reading, Second Reading,
Committee, Report, Third Reading – before it
reaches Royal Assent
Members can suggest changes (“amendments”)
at particular stages
Much of the most careful scrutiny goes on in
Committee, particularly in the House of Lords
First
opportunity for
debate of the
main principles
of the Bill. Vote
on whether the
Bills proceeds
Bill is
introduced
to the
House; a
formality
Amendments can be
proposed. Detailed
examination of the Bill in a
Public Bill Committee (knives
may be used)
Further amendment
to the content of the
Bill. All MPs may
speak and vote;
Speaker selects
amendments for
discussion
Final chance for the
Commons to debate
the contents of a
Bill, but no
amendments. Vote
on whether the Bill
is approved
First
opportunity for
debate of the
main principles
of the Bill. List
of Speakers is
opened. Vote
on whether the
Bills proceeds
Bill is
introduced
to the
House; a
formality
Amendments can be
proposed. Detailed
examination of the Bill in a
Committee of the Whole
House (any Member). No
time limit.
Further line by line
consideration of the
Bill. All amendments
can be discussed and
any Member can
take part.
Final chance to
debate and change
the Bill.
Amendments can be
made. Vote on
whether the Bill is
approved
‘Ping-pong’ .
Both Houses
must agree on
the exact
wording of a Bill
before it can
become an Act
of Parliament
Monarch's
agreement to make
the Bill into an Act
and is a formality.
When Royal Assent
has been given, the
announcement is
usually made in both
Houses by the Lord
Speaker in the Lords
and the Speaker in
the Commons
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MPs and Lords can introduce their own Bills
In the Commons, MPs can bring in a Bill through
the 10-minute rule
MPs can also enter the Private Members Bill ballot
every session
If they are in the first 20 or so names, their Bill
we be given debating time on a sitting Friday
Members of both Houses can also simply present
new Bills, but they are not guaranteed any
debating time
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Cross-party
Both MPs and Members of the House of Lords
Based around common interest (e.g. Housing
and care for older people, motor neurone
disease, football) or countries of the world
Not involved in formal decision making, but
important in developing knowledge
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Allows MPs to show their opinion on a particular
subject
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www.parliament.uk
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020 7219 4272 – Commons information
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020 7219 3107 – Lords information
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Scrutiny Unit - 020 7219 8381;
[email protected]
Select Committees – contact details are on
the Committees own homepage at
www.parliament.uk
Contact details for any MP or Peer can be
obtained at the Parliament homepage or
through the House information lines