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Last updated: 23 July 2009
23.1 Most flagship Government measures, in particular those which have major spending implications, are introduced in the House of Commons, though some may be introduced in the House of Lords in order to spread the workload of each House over the session. This part of the guide covers procedure for the Commons stages of Bills introduced in the Commons, explaining where procedure varies for the Commons stages of Bills introduced in the Lords.
23.2 During Parliamentary stages, Bill teams should inform their Minister's office as soon as they are advised of the timing of forthcoming stages, to ensure the Minister is on standby to attend Parliament when needed. The timetable below shows the conventional minimum timetable in the Commons that can be expected for a Bill of reasonable length and complexity.
23.3 Overview of stages and minimum intervals between them
23.4 Introduction and First Reading: most Bills are introduced by notice of presentation. The short title of the Bill is then read out before the day's bussiness in the Chamber on the appointed day, and a Minister nods - the Bill is thereby read the first time.
23.5 Second Reading: Minimal interval is normally two weekends following publication (in some circumstances it may be possible to adjust this) or after First Reading if coming from the Lords. The general principle of the Bill is debated. If a Bill fails to get a Second Reading, it can progress no further. The Opposition may choose not to vote against Second Reading, but retain major reservations about specific parts of the Bill. Immediately following Second Reading, the question on certain motions relating to proceedings on the Bill can be put forthwith:
23.6 Public Bill Committee Stage: the detailed scrutiny of the Bill. Minimum interval before Committee: one week if Second Reading on Monday or Tuesday, 10 days if Second Reading on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. Consists of:
Exceptions to this are:
23.7 Remaining Stages (usually about a week after committee ends, but may be less):
23.8 The Bill will then pass immediately to the Lords for its First Reading there.
23.9 The minimum interval between stages does not include recess weeks, so for example if a Bill is introduced during the last sitting week before Christmas recess the entire recess period will only count as one weekend and there must be at least one more full sitting week and weekend in the New Year before Second Reading debate.
23.10 The minimum intervals are exactly that and Bill teams should not expect the Bill to progress to that timetable – often the intervals between stages will be much longer. The timetable for a Bill to complete all of its stages in the Commons will be dependent on a number of factors, including the exact nature of the Bill, its size and complexity, but perhaps even more importantly the other Bills in the programme – other Bills may be accorded a higher priority if they are politically very important, or have a fixed deadline for Royal Assent. Minimum intervals in the Lords are slightly different.
23.11 Bill teams should alert departmental press offices to the dates of Parliamentary stages, particularly those where any votes are expected, and provide them with background briefing as necessary.
23.12 The House of Commons sits as follows:
23.13 On any day the House may rise later if there are votes at 10 p.m., 7 p.m. or 6 p.m. on Monday/Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday respectively, or if there is later business. The House may also rise unexpectedly early if the business collapses; an important point to bear in mind as the deadline for tabling amendments is the rise of the House.
23.14 Debate on Bills will not normally start until after 3.30pm on Monday/Tuesday, 12.30pm on Wednesday, or 11.30am on Thursday. The start of debate can be delayed by urgent or other ministerial statements. Bill teams should check for any likely delays with Parliamentary Branch on the morning of the debate.
23.15 Unless special provision is made for extended debate, debate on the Bill must finish by the “moment of interruption” which is half an hour before the House rises. If the Minister wishes to have an extended Second Reading, the Business Managers will need to be consulted, and, if they agree, there will need to be a “Business of the House” motion to enable this.
23.16 The first day after recess takes Monday hours. Sitting Fridays (13) are reserved for Private Members' business. Timings for Public Bill Committee will depend on the Programme Motion agreed for the Bill in question, but it is usual for Public Bill Committees to meet on Tuesdays at 10.30am and 4pm and Thursdays at 8.55am and 2.30pm. The times may vary, but morning sittings on a Tuesday must end at 1pm, and on Thursday normally start between 8.55am and 9.30am and must end by 10.25am. Afternoon sittings cannot start earlier than 3.30pm on a Tuesday or 12.30pm on Thursday and may continue until the Committee decides to adjourn.
23.17 There are two types of pass – plastic (pink) passes for officials who need to attend Parliament on a regular basis, and day passes for everybody else. Key players on the Bill (key policy leads and legal advisors as well as members of the Bill team) should apply for a plastic pass in good time – even before introduction, Bill teams will be meeting regularly with the Bill Minister and these meetings may well be held in Parliament. Departmental Parliamentary Branches should handle this for the Bill team – applicants will need to complete a form and when the application has been authorised will then need to go the Pass Office on Derby Gate to have their photo taken and a pass made up.
23.18 Other officials who may need to attend Parliament from time to time will need to ask their Parliamentary Branch to arrange for a day pass to be issued, then allow plenty of time to pick them up and pass through security (this can sometimes take 30 minutes or more. If your Bill is particularly controversial, with the result that a lot of people try to get into the House, you may need to go very early and arrange briefing with the Minister in the House rather than in the Department). There is no need to request a day pass a long time in advance – it is normally fine for officials to tell the Parliamentary Branch that they need a pass for the following day, or even for the same day, and this can be arranged very quickly. Day passes must be collected from the Derby Gate Pass Office and again a photo will be taken even for a day pass – officials must have their departmental security pass with them for identification. Day passes must be picked up in person from Derby Gate. They are valid for the whole day so if it is more convenient they can be picked up some time before they are needed that day.
23.19 When Parliament is sitting the Derby Gate Pass Office opens at 8am and closes at 6pm, so officials wanting to enter after 6pm must remember to collect their pass earlier in the day. During recess there are reduced opening hours – check with the Pass Office on 020 7219 5915. Officials should allow an absolute minimum of 15 minutes to get from the Pass Office at Derby Gate to the House of Commons or House of Lords.
23.20 Bill teams and officials who will need to sit in the Officials Gallery (i.e. the Box) in either Chamber, to support their Minister during debate should ask the departmental Parliamentary Clerk to arrange box passes for them on those days.