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Last updated: 08 July 2009
37.1 Immediately after Committee stage, the Chairman reports that the Committee has passed the Bill with or without amendment. If the Bill has not been amended in Committee, the Peer in charge may then move that the report of the Committee “be now received”, and a day is arranged for Third Reading without a Report Stage. This rarely happens on Government Bills, and only by agreement.
37.2 If the Bill has been amended in Committee, an order is made for it to be reprinted as amended, and the Report stage is fixed for a subsequent date when further amendments may be put down.
37.3 Unlike in the Commons, the Lords Report and Third Reading stages are not usually combined but are taken on separate days. Report stage can last more than one day and sometimes will be as long as half the number of days the Bill was considered at Committee.
37.4 Proceedings on Report are opened by the Peer in charge of the Bill moving “that this Report be now received”. Although on rare occasions this question may be debated, it is usually taken formally. Once the motion is agreed, the tabled amendments are called in the order in which they are marshalled, with the question put on each “that this amendment be agreed to”.
37.5 The order in which the amendments are taken can be altered by an order of the House agreed to on a motion which, like the instruction at Committee Stage, is drafted by Parliamentary Counsel on the department's instructions and given to the Government Whips' Office as soon as possible to be tabled.
37.6 The rule that no Member of the Lords may speak twice on any question (except the mover of an amendment, who has a right to reply) applies on Report stage as it does on Second and Third Reading.
37.7 Whereas in Committee the whole Bill is open to discussion, regardless of whether or not amendments are tabled (because each clause or schedule must be stood part), on Report debate is limited to amendments before the House. Amendments to leave out clauses or schedules are therefore at this stage treated as ordinary amendments.
37.8 Very occasionally, where important amendments have been tabled, the Bill may be recommitted (as a whole or in part) to Committee Stage to allow for the amendments to be fully discussed in Committee of the whole House. This can be done at any time between Committee and Third Reading.
37.9 Queen's Consent is (if required) signified as soon as the Clerk has read the notice and before the Third Reading is moved. This should not be confused with Royal Assent.
37.10 When the Third Reading is called, the Lord in charge moves “that this Bill be now read a third time”. When this has been agreed to, further amendments may be moved but only if notice of them has been given not later than the day before that on which they are to be moved (except in the case of privilege amendments: see below). Manuscript amendments are inadmissible on Third Reading.
37.11 The principal purposes of amendments on Third Reading are to clarify any remaining uncertainties, to improve the drafting and to enable the Government to fulfil undertakings given at earlier stages of the Bill. Amendments are restricted to technical points to tidy up the Bill. An issue which has been fully debated and voted on or negatived at a previous stage of a Bill may not be reopened by an amendment on Third Reading. Notice is required if any Member of the House wishes to move an amendment to leave out a clause or schedule on Third Reading, just as it is on Report.
37.12 It is the privilege of the Commons to control charges on public funds. To avoid infringing this privilege, the House of Lords formally declare that nothing in a Bill starting in their House involves such a charge. The “privilege amendment” is moved by the Peer in charge formally, after any other amendments have been disposed of. It is agreed to without debate. If other amendments are moved on Third Reading, the privilege amendment is moved after they have been dealt with.
37.13 The privilege amendment takes the form of a subsection to the effect that nothing in the Bill shall impose any charge upon the people or on public funds. It appears in the Commons print in bold type, where it is of course deleted. The text of the privilege amendment is given to the spokesman in the procedural brief supplied by the Lords Public Bill Office, if Parliamentary Counsel has advised that there is money in the Lords Bill.
37.14 In spite of the above, the House of Lords is not inhibited from discussing financial provisions, and briefing may be needed for such discussion. Where a Bill has started in the Commons, the Commons can agree with Lords amendments which infringe privilege or relate to local rates, thus waiving privilege. The Commons have relaxed their claim to privilege in matters affecting pecuniary penalties and fees by Standing Order Nos. 79 and 80.
37.15 The motion “that this Bill do now pass” is moved immediately after any amendments on Third Reading have been disposed of. It is usually formal.
37.16 When a Bill which starts in the Lords has passed through all its stages there, it is sent to the Commons with a message asking for their agreement and the Bill will be introduced in the Commons, normally on the following day. When a Bill starting in the Commons has been amended in the Lords, the amendments go back to the Commons for their agreement.