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Last updated: 25 March 2010
Explanatory Notes: introduction
11.1 All Government Bills introduced in either House must be accompanied by Explanatory Notes, drafted by the Bill team in consultation with Parliamentary Counsel, and with the department's Finance Division and HM Treasury as appropriate. The Explanatory Notes, updated as need be, are also published alongside the Acts to which they relate.
11.2 This chapter explains what should be included in Explanatory Notes, how they should be structured, formatted and published, and when they need to be updated.
Bills for which Explanatory Notes must be prepared
11.3 Explanatory Notes are required for all Government Bills, that is, Bills introduced in either House by a Government Minister, except for Finance Bills, Consolidation Bills and Tax Law Rewrite Bills – for all of which different explanatory material is provided. They must be published alongside the Bill at introduction, and Legislation Committee will not approve a Bill for introduction if Explanatory Notes have not been prepared. Explanatory Notes are also required for all Bills published in draft.
11.4 Notes should also normally be provided for handout Bills, that is, Private Members' Bills supported and drafted by the Government.
Responsibility for producing the Explanatory Notes
11.5 The department sponsoring the Bill is responsible for drafting the Explanatory Notes to accompany it. The draft must be agreed with the Parliamentary Counsel drafting the Bill, who will check that it is consistent with the Bill. If the provisions fall within the legislative competence of the National Assembly for Wales or the Northern Ireland Assembly, wording should be agreed ad hoc with relevant territorial departments in the UK government.
11.6 Although prepared by departments, Explanatory Notes are a Parliamentary document and copyright is assigned to Parliament while the Bill is before Parliament. The Public Bill Office in each House arranges publication as a separate document alongside the Bill; and makes the Bill and its Notes available on the (Parliamentary website [External website]).
11.7 It is therefore strongly recommended that instead of publishing the Bill and Explanatory Notes on their own departmental website (for which copyright permission would need to be obtained by contacting HMSO) departments simply provide a link to the Parliamentary website page about their Bill. Even if the Bill itself is not amended, the Explanatory Notes must be updated at certain stages of Parliamentary passage, and the most recent version will always be published on the Parliament website (along with all previous versions in chronological order).
11.8 The purpose of the Notes is to:
11.9 The Notes are not intended to be an exhaustive description of the Bill or to be a substitute for it. Their purpose is to make the Bill accessible to readers who are not legally qualified and who have no specialised knowledge of the subject matter.
11.10 The Notes are not legislation. They do not form part of the Bill and are not amendable by Parliament nor endorsed by it. They are not designed to resolve ambiguities in the text of the Bill – if ambiguities are identified as the Bill progresses, they should be removed by amendment. The Notes should make clear that they do not purport to be authoritative rulings on the interpretation of the proposed legislation, as only the courts can give these.
11.11 After Royal Assent, the final version of the Notes will be published alongside the Act. If the Notes are successful in the purpose of helping the reader, they are likely to be read by judges as well as by others. Occasionally it may be that the Notes are referred to in litigation, on a basis analagous to that which allows Hansard to be taken into account under the conditions contained in the rule in Pepper v Hart [para 6.37 refers]. So it is important that the Notes do not mislead; and that they do not include material which seems to take the law further than the Bill or Act does.
11.12 The notes must be prepared in Microsoft Word, using HP LaserJet4 PostScript drivers. This ensures compatibility with the software used by the Public Bill Offices and the printers.
Importance of using the template provided
11.13 The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel will provide Bill teams with a template which must be used to prepare the Notes, and instructions on how to install and use it. It is very important that the template is used, since it ensures that the Notes can be printed without error or delay. Bill teams should contact Parliamentary Counsel if they encounter any difficulties in using the template.
11.14 A checklist of tasks for preparing and finalising Explanatory Notes is provided here, followed by more detailed guidance on each stage.
| Up to introduction | |
|---|---|
| Stage | Action |
| Instructions sent to Counsel. |
|
| Drafting of Bill well-advanced. |
|
| Before Legislation Committee meets to approve the Bill for introduction |
|
| Before introduction |
|
| Bill in House of introduction | |
| Before report stage |
|
| At time of third reading (or earlier, where possible) |
|
| Immediately after third reading (or earlier, where possible) |
|
| Bill brought to second House | |
|---|---|
| Before report stage |
|
| At time of third reading (or earlier, where possible) |
|
| Immediately after third reading (or earlier, where possible) |
|
| On completion of Parliamentary passage |
|
| Royal Assent | |
| Royal Assent |
|
11.15 Departments are likely to find that it will save time in the long run, and make for a better product, if they start work on the background parts of Explanatory Notes as soon as they have sent instructions to Parliamentary Counsel – or even alongside instructions if time allows – as they will take a long time to perfect. But it is unlikely to be efficient to prepare detailed commentary on clauses until their form is settling down.
11.16 The Explanatory Notes must be provided alongside the Bill before Legislation Committee will clear the Bill for introduction. The Notes should be cleared with departmental legal advisors and the Parliamentary Counsel for the Bill before they are sent to Legislation Committee. Parliamentary Counsel will arrange for the relevant Public Bill Office to comment on the draft Notes (either before or after L Committee, as time allows).
11.17 If Parliament is to be asked to expedite the parliamentary progress of the Bill, the Explanatory Notes should include a full explanation of the reasons for this. L Committe clearance will only be granted for a Bill that is to be fast-tracked if the Notes include an explanation in acordance with paragraph 11.47 below.
11.18 The Bill team should find out whether the Bill Minister also wishes to approve the text of the Explanatory Notes and ensure that there is sufficient time for Ministerial clearance before the Notes are submitted to Legislation Committee alongside the Bill.
11.19 When the Bill is ready to be introduced, the final version of the Notes should be sent to Parliamentary Counsel. Parliamentary Counsel will make a final check of the Notes, then send them on to the House authorities together with the Bill. The House authorities will also check the text (and may require changes), before arranging printing and publication.
11.20 Late publication of Explanatory Notes can lead to serious complaint from Members, so every effort should be made to avoid this. If, in exceptional circumstances, publication is likely to be delayed, the Bill team should contact Legislation Secretariat as soon as possible who will ensure that Legislation Committee and the Business Managers are informed.
Updating the Explanatory Notes
11.21 The Explanatory Notes as a whole should be revised at least twice:
11.22 This will ensure that each House has Notes which relate to the version of the Bill before it; and that Notes will be available for the Act, to assist users of the legislation.
11.23 If the Bill is amended in the second House, it must return to the first House for those amendments to be considered. Departments must submit Explanatory Notes on the second House amendments, but do not need to prepare a complete set of Explanatory Notes for the whole Bill all over again. Explanatory Notes on second House amendments may not be required in urgent cases (for example, where consideration of the amendments takes place on the same day as the amending stage in the second House, or during any accelerated consideration of second House amendments during a “wash-up” period before a dissolution of Parliament after a General Election has been called). But a decision not to produce such Notes should only be taken after consultation with the House authorities through Parliamentary Counsel and with the Leader of the House of Commons through Legislation Secretariat.
11.24 If a Bill is amended significantly during one of its stages in a House (for example, in Committee) the department may wish to consider updating the Notes in time for the next stage of that House's consideration of the Bill, though this additional updating is highly unusual. However, in practical terms, it will be easiest for Bill teams to revise their working version of the Explanatory Notes as the Bill is amended, rather than waiting until the end of the first House.
11.25 Parliamentary Counsel must be consulted about any changes made to the Explanatory Notes, at any stage.
Key points in drafting the Notes
11.26 It is essential that the Notes should be neutral in tone. Explanatory Notes are a Parliamentary document and copyright is assigned to Parliament while the Bill is before Parliament. Therefore it is open to the House authorities to refuse to publish the Notes, and they have made it clear that they will do so if the Notes attempt to “sell” the Bill, that is, go beyond a neutral account of the Bill and into promoting it. For example, it is permissible to say what the provisions are designed to do, but not to say that a measure “deals comprehensivley with the problem by…” This is not usually an issue, but there have been one or two cases over the years where Notes have had to be revised to meet this requirement. The practical risk, of course, is that the Notes will be published late if revisions have to be made.
11.27 It is also important to avoid jargon and “legalese” in the Notes. They are designed to assist readers without legal training and unfamiliar with the subject matter of the Bill. Experience shows that the most successful Notes are ones written in plain language, with short sentences and paragraphs.
11.28 Layout should follow the form and conventions set out in the following paragraphs and in more detail at the end of this chapter.
Structure of the Explanatory Notes
11.29 There are no fixed rules governing the contents of the Notes: exactly what is covered will depend on the Bill. But they should usually contain the following items, each of which is covered in more detail below: Introduction, Summary and background, Overview of the structure of the Bill, Territorial extent and application, Commentary, and concluding sections on: Financial effects, Public sector manpower, Summary of the Impact Assessment, Compatibility with the European Convention of Human Rights, Transposition Notes, Commencement date(s).
11.30 For those Bills whose parliamentary progress is to be expedited, the Notes must contain an additional section entitled Fast-Tracked Legislation, which is inserted after Territorial Extent and application.
11.31 In preparing the Explanatory Notes, officials should remember that within 3-5 years of Royal Assent the Government will be required to submit a Memorandum to the relevant departmental Select Committee with a preliminary assessment of how the Act has worked out in practice, to allow the Committee to decide whether it wishes to conduct further post-legislative scrutiny. The Explanatory Notes (along with the Impact Assessment) must therefore provide sufficient information about the objectives of the Act to allow any post-legislative reviewing body to make an effective assessment as to how an Act is working out in practice.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Header
11.32 The notes should on introduction have the following header on each page: These notes refer to the [name of] Bill [Bill reference number] as introduced in the House of [Lords/Commons] on [date]. In the second House, the header should refer to the Bill being "brought from" the first House, rather than "introduced" into the second House.
11.33 The Public Bill Office will insert the Bill reference number.
11.34 Avoid footnotes on the first page of text because the Public Bill Office will insert a reference footer there. Avoid hyperlinks.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Introduction
11.35 All Explanatory Notes should begin with an Introduction which makes it clear that they have been prepared by the department and do not form part of the Bill. The Introduction should take the following standard form.
INTRODUCTION
Explanatory Notes section by section: The main body of the Notes
11.36 There are no fixed rules governing the contents of the body of the Notes: exactly what is covered will depend on the Bill. But they should usually contain the following:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Summary and background
11.37 This section should give a reader without legal training and with no great knowledge of matters covered by the Bill sufficient information to grasp what the legislation is about:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Overview of the structure of the Bill
11.38 This provides a summary of the Bill's structure (how it is divided into different Parts and Sections). This may not be necessary for short Bills.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Territorial extent and application
11.39 The territorial extent and application of the legislation should be set out in a statement at the beginning of the Notes in whatever form of words is appropriate to the Bill in question.
11.40 Where the Bill makes different provision for the different nations of the UK, this should be outlined in the Explanatory Notes – going through each part of the Bill and setting out its territorial extent separately if necessary.
11.41 In particular, the Notes should make clear where additional powers and responsibilities are being given to Welsh Ministers to do things where in England similar powers and responsibilities are being given to Ministers of the Crown, where the Bill affects powers or responsibilities already held by Welsh Ministers, where “framework powers” are being created to give the National Assembly of Wales legislative competence to pass Measures dealing with matters within the scope of the Bill, and if the Bill otherwise affects Wales differently from the way it affects England. While there are no hard and fast rules as to how this section should be drafted, it should explain:
11.42 The key point is that the person reading the Notes should be able to find out quickly whether the Bill affects Wales and, if it does, what the general effect is. If the Bill affects the powers of the Welsh Ministers or the National Assembly, the reader should see a full list of the relevant provisions. There is no need to provide an additional commentary on the clauses identified as affecting Wales, unless they affect Wales differently to the way they affect England, as this commentary should be in the main body of the Notes in the normal way. Where there is no effect on the Welsh Ministers or the National Assembly, and no other particular effect on Wales, that is all the section needs to say.
11.43 Similarly for Scotland and Northern Ireland, the key point is that the person reading the Notes should be able to find out quickly whether the Bill affects Scotland or Northern Ireland and, if it does, what the general effect is in each constituent part of the UK. A similar approach should be taken as described for Wales above, although it is likely to be less complicated as there is no equivalent of “framework powers” and UK legislation will not normally vary the powers of Ministers in the Scottish Parliament or Northern Ireland Assembly.
11.44 The Notes should set out which provisions, if any, touch on matters that are devolved to Scotland or transferred to Northern Ireland, and indicate whether a Legislative Consent Motion is likely to be sought by the relevant devolved administration in the Scottish Parliament or the Northern Ireland Assembly, using a form of words as below (for Scotland) or as agreed with the Northern Ireland Office. There is no need to provide an additional commentary on the clauses identified as affecting Scotland or Northern Ireland, unless they affect those parts of the UK differently to the way they affect England, as this commentary should be in the main body of the Notes in the normal way.
At introduction – if the Bill does not trigger a Legislative Consent Motion:
11.45 This Bill does not contain any provisions falling within the terms of the Sewel Convention. Because the Sewel Convention provides that Westminster will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters in Scotland without the consent of the Scottish Parliament, if there are amendments relating to such matters which trigger the Convention, the consent of the Scottish Parliament will be sought for them.
At introduction – if the Bill does trigger Sewel Convention:
11.46 At Introduction this Bill contains provisions that trigger the Sewel Convention. The provisions relate to [insert some details of the content and purpose of the provisions]. The Sewel Convention provides that Westminster will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters in Scotland without the consent of the Scottish Parliament. If there are amendments relating to such matters which trigger the Convention, the consent of the Scottish Parliament will be sought for them.
When a Bill that triggers the Sewel Convention moves to its second House:
11.47 The Scottish Parliament's consent [has been] [is being] sought for the provisions in the Bill that trigger the Sewel Convention. These provisions relate to [insert some details of the content and the purpose of the provisions]. The Sewel Convention provides that Westminster will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters in Scotland without the consent of the Scottish Parliament. If there are amendments relating to such matters which trigger the Convention, the consent of the Scottish Parliament will be sought for them.
11.48 The territorial extent section of the Notes should be agreed by officials in the Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland Offices before the Notes are sent to Legislation Committee.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Fast-track legislation
11.49 This section must be included if Parliament is to be asked to expedite the parliamentary progress of the Bill. It should begin with the following statement (including the footnotes):
"The Government intend to ask Parliament to expedite the parliamentary progress of this Bill. In their report on Fast-track Legislation: Consitutional Implications and Safeguards1, the House of Lords Select Committee on the Constitution recommended2"
1House of Lords' Select Committee on the Constitution, 15th report of Session 2008-09, HL Paper 116-I
2Paragraph 186 of the Report
11.50 The statement should be followed by paragraphs answering each of the questions set out in paragraph 186 of the Committee's report, fully but concisely. Each question should be set out as a heading (in bold and italics). The questions are:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Commentary
11.51 This section gives more detailed information about the legislation. It is not necessary, and except for the smallest of Bills would not normally be appropriate, to explain every single clause. The point is to provide additional information, not to duplicate the legislation or repeat or paraphrase it, and to explain what the Bill would do in simple terms. Each part of the Notes is likely to cover a number of clauses.
11.52 The Commentary should provide background information which makes the legislation easier to understand, for example:
11.53 This is not a rigid list. Not all of the material will be relevant to all Bills. And in the case of some Bills it may be appropriate to include material not listed above, such as:
11.54 It may also be worthwhile to include in the Notes (rather than in the Bill) an index of terms defined in the Bill and an explanation of how the interpretation provisions of the Bill fit together and are intended to work.
11.55 Many Bills amend existing legislation and it can be difficult for the reader to work out what the amended legislation will look like. Where it is likely to be helpful to the reader, revised passages showing important amendments to key extracts of existing legislation may be annexed to the Explanatory Notes. However, the Explanatory Notes should not include lengthy annexes setting out existing legislation as amended. If the department feels that these would be helpful to Members, they should be made available to Members separately. The occasional practice of including this material in Bills (“Keeling Schedules”) has largely been discontinued, because of the practical difficulties of keeping them up to date.
Style
11.56 Observing the following style points will minimise requests from the House authorities for changes before approval:
As a matter of good style:
The Notes should then conclude with the following sections:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Financial effects
11.57 The House authorities will take a particular interest in the financial effects section of the Bill, as these may have implications for the financial cover required. (This is particularly important in Notes on amendments made in the Lords because it is relevant to the question of whether the financial privileges of the Commons will be engaged). The Notes should give estimates of expenditure expected to fall on:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Public sector manpower
11.58 The Notes should in all cases include forecasts of any changes in the staff of Government departments and their agencies which are expected to result from the Bill:
Explanatory Notes section by section: Summary of the Impact Assessment
11.59 A summary of the Impact Assessment and a reference to where the full Impact Assessment can be obtained, or, in the very rare cases where a full Impact Assessment is not required, explain why this is. In particular, following a commitment given by Government during the passage of the Climate Change Bill in 2007, the summary of the Impact Assessment should include a summary of the carbon impact assessment.
11.60 The 2008 Enterprise Strategy committed the Government to examine whether small firms can be fully exempted from new regulatory requirements or be subject to a simplification of enforcement.For all primary legislation from the 2009-10 session the Explanatory Notes should therefore describe the targeted approach that has been taken to avoid the Bill imposing a burdens on small firms (of 50 employees or less and a turnover below £2.8million), or alternatively explain the policy/legal reasons why a targeted and more flexible approach was not possible. More detailed guidance on considering possible exemptions/greater flexibility for small firms is being prepared by the Better Regulation Executive, who should be contacted for the latest advice on 020 7215 1921.
11.61 Even where a full Impact Assessment is not required, the Notes should still include a reference to the Equality Impact Assessments (covering race, disability and gender) which are a statutory requirement and must be produced by the department.
11.62 Impact Assessments must be placed in the Vote Office (Commons) or Printed Paper Office (Lords). Directing the reader to a website is helpful but not sufficient.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Compatibility with the European Convention of Human Rights
11.63 The Explanatory Notes should record the fact that a statement has been made pursuant to section 19 of the Human Rights Act 1998 and what this statement was. The Explanatory Notes must also give further details of the most significant human rights issues thought to arise from the Bill, as the Government has made a commitment to this effect. These will have been set out in the ECHR Memorandum prepared for Legislation Committee (though departments should remember that any advice from the Law Officers contained in the ECHR Memorandum should not be disclosed in the Explanatory Notes). This assessment of the impact of the Bill's provisions on the Convention rights should be as detailed as possible setting out any relevant case law and presenting the Government's reasons for concluding that the provisions in the Bill are Convention compatible.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Transposition Notes
11.64 If the Bill implements a European Directive, the Explanatory Notes should include in the form of an annex a set of “Transposition Notes” illustrating how the UK Government intends to transpose all the main elements of the Directive(s) into UK law. A reference should be included in the Explanatory Notes as follows: “This Bill includes provisions [giving effect to] / [implementing] the following European Community Legislation: [relevant details of the relevant Directive(s)]. A Transposition Note setting out how the Government will transpose into UK law the main elements of [this/these] Directive(s) is annexed to these Explanatory Notes.”
11.65 The Explanatory Note should also explain in broad terms the approach to transposition, highlighting any difficult areas and including a brief scrutiny history of when the Directive was considered by the EU Scrutiny Committees. Where possible, direct cross-references between the articles of the Directive and the specific clauses of the UK legislation should be made.
11.66 The Transposition Notes should be included with the Explanatory Note in a single electronic document sent to Parliamentary Counsel for forwarding to the Public Bill Office. When the Bill receives Royal Assent, if Parliament has made any amendments that mean that the Transposition Note produced when the legislation was first laid before Parliament is out of date, it should be updated so that it reflects these amendments and included as an annex to the Explanatory Notes to the Act.
11.67 Please see BERR's Transposition Guide: how to implement European Directives effectively [External PDF] or contact the Better Regulation Executive in BERR for advice on 020 7215 0184.
Explanatory Notes section by section: Commencement date(s)
11.68 The proposed commencement date for the legislation (or dates, where different commencement dates are proposed for different provisions) should be set out, if this is planned for a fixed date such as the common commencement dates of 6 April or 1 October. If commencement is planned to take place a fixed period of time (usually two months) after Royal Assent this should be stated.
Revisions when the Bill moves from the House of introduction to the other House
11.69 The Header should be revised to read: These Notes refer to the [name of] Bill [Bill reference number] as brought from the House of [Lords/Commons] on [date].
11.70 Similarly, in the Introduction, the first sentence should be revised to read: These
Explanatory Notes relate to the [name of Bill] as brought from the House of [Lords/Commons] on [date].
11.71 The rest of the Notes should be checked and amended to take account of:
11.72 Sometimes an amendment will be made in the first House which the Government has said it will seek to overturn in the second House. The Notes should give a neutral description of the amendment and its effect; say the Government intends to seek to overturn the amendment and should not argue the pros and cons of the amendment. If a Minister has said in the House that the Government intends to seek to overturn the amendment, the Explanatory Notes may give the Hansard reference for that statement: but if no announcement has been made to that effect, the Notes are not the place for it.
11.73 The revised Notes should be published as soon as the Bill passes to the second House. However, if, for example, a Bill starting in the Lords was amended at Third Reading there may need to be a short delay in publishing the Explanatory Notes to allow time for them to be updated to reflect the amendment. This is acceptable.
11.74 The revised Notes should be cleared with the Bill legal advisors and thereafter with Parliamentary Counsel for the Bill. As at introduction, they should be sent to Parliamentary Counsel. Counsel will clear the Notes with the House authorities who will arrange printing and publication.
11.75 The Statement about compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights will have to be updated as the Minister taking the Bill through the second House will have made a new Statement.
Explanatory Notes on amendments made in the second House
11.76 The Government must provide short EXplanatory Notes on any second House amendments (whether Government or non Government) to be published when the Bill returns to the first House for consideration. Departments will need to liaise with parliamentary Counsel on this.
11.78 Parliamentary Counsel will provide Bill teams with a template for these Notes. It is very important that the template is used.
11.79 The form of these Notes is simialr to the form of the Notes on the Bill as a whole. But please note the following:
11.80 Notes are required only on the first passage of amendments back to the first House and they are not required on subsequent stages of pingpong.
Revisions when the Bill becomes an Act
11.81 As soon as the Bill has completed its passage through Parliament, the department should prepare a revised version of the Notes, to accompany the Act. After clearing them with Parliamentary Counsel, the department should email the final Explanatory Notes to mailto:HMSOPublishing@opsi.x.gsi.gov.uk.
11.82 Compared with the Bill version, the following changes should be made:
Introduction
The following table sets out the dates and Hansard references for each stage of this Act's passage through Parliament.
| Stage | Date | Hansard reference |
|---|---|---|
| House of Commons | ||
| Introduction | 27 November 1998 | Vol. 321 Col 437 |
| Second Reading | 8 December 1998 | Vol. 322 Cols. 160-214 |
| Committee | 15 December 1998 and 12 January 1999 | Hansard Standing Committee B |
| Report and Third Reading | 21 January 1999 | Vol. 323 Cols. 1035-1078 |
| House of Lords | ||
| Introduction | 21 January 1999 | Vol. 596 Col 752 |
| Second Reading | 2 February 1999 | Vol. 596 Cols. 1445-1461 |
| Committee | 18 February 1999 | Vol. 597 Cols. 759-803 |
| Report | 2 March 1999 | Vol. 597 Cols. 1559-1567 |
| Third reading | 8 March 1999 | Vol. 598 Col 12 |
| Royal Assent – 10 March 1999 | House of Lords Hansard Vol. 598 Col 217 House of Commons Hansard Vol. 327 Col 383 |
11.83 Once the Bill receives Royal Assent, the Lords Public Bill Office will send the Act to OPSI in the usual way for printing.
11.84 The Department must send the final version of the Explanatory Notes to OPSI for publication alongside the Act. OPSI will also make the Act and Notes available on the website of the Office of Public Sector Information [External website]. Versions published on the OPSI website are recognised by the Courts and any corrections that are subsequently required to the Act or Explanatory Notes will be incorporated into the texts published on the OPSI website. Departments should therefore provide links to these texts from their own websites rather than publishing them separately on their own website.
Explanatory Notes for Private Members' “handout” Bills
11.85 Departments should not provide Explanatory Notes for Private Members' Bills that the Government does not support. If a department wishes to provide Explanatory Notes for a Private Member's Bill that is being supported by Government but is not a “handout” Bill, Parliamentary Counsel should be consulted in advance.
11.86 However, the Government should prepare Explanatory Notes for all handout Bills – Private Members' Bills which the Government has decided to support and has been drafted or redrafted by Parliamentary Counsel on instructions from the relevant department. With the exception of the points listed below, Explanatory Notes for handout Bills should be prepared in the same way as for Government Bills, and should likewise be updated when the Bill has been passed and gained Royal Assent and sent to HMSO for publishing alongside the Act.
11.87 To make it clear that the Government is volunteering the Notes, not responding automatically to requests from the Member or Peer, the second sentence of the first paragraph should read as follows:
11.88 When the Bill is brought to the second House, a Member/Peer in that House will take charge of the Bill and when the revised Explanatory Notes are published the sentence above should be amended accordingly.
11.89 Explanatory Notes for handout Bills should not include a section on the European Convention on Human Rights. Section 19 of the Human Rights Act 1998 applies only to Bills where a Minister is in charge. However, the Notes for a handout Bill may contain an explanation of the human rights position.
11.90 Explanatory Notes for Bills are published by Parliament. The Public Bill Office in each House will not print the notes for handout Bills without the consent of the Member or Peer in charge of the Bill. Departments should therefore ensure that the Member or Peer in charge is content that the Notes should be provided and has informed the Public Bill Office of this in writing.
11.91 It is a matter for departments whether they wish to give the Member or Peer in charge of the Bill the opportunity to see and comment on the Notes in draft. This will normally be possible when the Bill is first introduced; but there may not be time for it when the Bill is brought from one House to the other.
Detailed guidance on layout of Explanatory Notes
11.92 Departments will find it easier to use the template provided by Parliamentary Counsel if they observe the following:
Word-processing programme: Word 6 or later versions of Word.
Page size: A4 Portrait (210 x 297 mm)
Page set-up:
Typeface/font/justification: Except when indicated otherwise below, the typeface should be 12-point Times New Roman and justified to both margins (“Perfect” justification).
Header: The Header should be centred; be in 11-point Times New Roman Italic; and give a cross-reference to the Bill in the following form: These Notes refer to the [name of] Bill (xxxx) as introduced in the House of [Lords/Commons] on [date]
Example
SUPREME COURT (OFFICES) BILL (Title should be centered)
________________
Explanatory Notes
Side headings: For the main divisions of the document, side-headings should be in bold, upper case 12-point, preceded by two blank lines and succeeded by a single blank line.
Examples
INTRODUCTION
SUMMARY
BACKGROUND
THE BILL
TERRITORIAL EXTENET AND APPLICATION
COMMENTARY ON CLAUSES
FINANCIAL EFFECTS OF THE BILL
EFFECTS OF THE BILL ON PUBLIC SERVICE MANPOWER
SUMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
TRANSPOSITION NOTES
COMMENCEMENT
Second-level and third-level side-headings: Apart from Commentary (see below), secondary side-headings should be in lower-case bold italic 12-point. If a third level of side-heading is needed, use lower-case italic 12-point. Both second-level and third-level side-headings should be preceded and succeeded by a single blank line.
Example
BACKGROUND
THE OFFICE OF PERMANENT SECRETARY TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Legal duties
Second-level and third-level side-headings for the Commentary on Clauses: Side-headings in the Commentary should be in lower-case bold. If the side-heading covers a single clause, it should use the same words as the side-heading in the Bill. If the side-heading covers more than one clause, it should be based on the side-headings for those clauses used in the Bill. These side-headings should be preceded but not followed by a blank line.
Within the text, in the main passage referring to a subsection of a clause, the first mention of the subsection should be in italics.
Example
COMMENTARY
Clause 1: Referendum
12. Subsection (1) sets 7 May 1998 as the date for the referendum unless a later date is set by an Order in Council. Subsection (3) provides that an Order postponing the referendum must first be approved by both Houses of Parliament.
Paragraph numbering:Paragraphs should be numbered throughout the note, 1, 2, 3,....
Sub-paragraphs: Sub-paragraphs should be indented by one tab stop. Preferably, bullets or numbers should be applied, with hanging indents. Leave a gap of one line between the sub-paragraph(s) and the preceding (and any following) text. Do not leave gaps between sub-paragraphs.
Example
5. The Bill covers:
Definitions and explanations: It will sometimes be helpful to tell the reader where to find the definition or explanation of a term used in the Bill but not defined in it. Or it may be helpful to set out the definition or explanation in the Explanatory Notes. For example, the Greater London (Referendum) Bill did not contain a definition of “Greater London” or an explanation of “franchise”.
Definitions should be in 9.5-point, be indented by one tab-stop and be preceded by a * symbol (this symbol should not be used for any other purpose than marking definitions). The defined word or phrase should be italicised.
Example
Explanations should also be in 9.5-point, but not indented nor marked with a special symbol. The term being dealt with should be italicised.
Example
The franchise for London borough elections is dealt with in Part I of the Representation of the People Act 1983(c.2), in particular sections 2 to 17.
The franchise for City of London ward elections is dealt with in section 6(1) of the City of London (Various Powers) Act 1957 (c.x).
Diagrams, tables, flow-charts, formulae and examples: By all means include these in the Explanatory Notes where they make it easier to grasp the structure and workings of the legislation.
Showing amendments to existing legislation: Many Bills amend existing legislation, at least to some extent. In some cases, it will be helpful to show how the existing legislation is altered by the Bill by setting out an extract from the existing Act and showing where and how the Bill amends it. It is not required to show the effects of all amendments to existing legislation in this way.
Where amendments are being shown, deletions should be shown by striking through; insertions should be in bold.
Example
For the purposes of this Act, “employment agency” means the business of finding workers [strike through workers] persons employment with employers or of supplying employers with workers [strike through workers] persons for employment by them.