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Last updated: 25 March 2010
27.1 Programming of Bills allows for some aspects of the timetable of a Bill's passage through the Commons to be set out in advance. Most Government Bills are now subject to Programme Orders in the Commons. Alternatively, there are arrangements in the Commons for the Government to impose a timetable through an “allocation of time order” or “guillotine”, though this is now uncommon.
27.2 Programme Motions are taken immediately after Second Reading. They are expected to be agreed in advance, at least in broad outline, and only informally and privately, between the parties. Programming is intended to be flexible: the precise nature of the process will depend on the Bill, and how the Minister, the Business Managers and the Opposition wish to handle it.
27.3 Once a programme motion is accepted, extra time can only be made available through amendments to the programme motions. Therefore programming increases the importance of forward planning, of good communications between Bill teams, Parliamentary Branches and the Whips, and of keeping amendments to a minimum.
27.4 As soon as the Bill is introduced, there will need to be informal discussion with the Whips, who will liaise with other parties to identify what would be a reasonable timescale for the Bill's Committee stage. To do this properly, it is essential that participants have a much information as possible about:
27.5 The Programme Motion will be drafted by Parliamentary Counsel and is taken immediately after Second Reading. It will usually comprise:
27.6 Before Second Reading, the Bill team should discuss with the Chief Whip's Private Secretary how long they think the Bill will need in Committee, based on their knowledge of the Bill and taking into account the amount of time taken on previous Bills of a similar size and controversy. In the first instance, the timetable should be based on a maximum of two sittings each on Tuesdays and Thursdays during sitting weeks. The Whips will need to take into account the demands of other Bills in the programme. The proposed timetable is likely to be modified as a result of discussions through the usual channels.
The role of the Programming Sub-Committee at Committee stage
27.7 Once the programme motion has been taken at Second Reading, the details of the programme in Committee are settled through resolutions of a Programming Committee (for Committees of the whole House) or Programming Sub-Committee (for Public Bill Committee). The following describes procedure for Public Bill Committee; procedure for Committee of the whole House is similar.
27.8 The Programming Sub-Committee will be chaired by the nominated Chairman of the Committee which is to consider the Bill, and is composed of seven members of the Committee nominated by the Speaker. They will include the lead Minister, the Opposition spokesperson, a Member of the second Opposition party, the Minister's Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS), a Government backbencher, a Government Whip and Opposition Whip. The Sub-Committee usually meets a day or two before the Committee first sits.
27.9 Parliamentary Counsel will draft the appropriate motion for consideration by the Programming Sub-Committee based on instructions from the department, which will in turn arise from discussions through the usual channels. The level of detail in these resolutions has varied considerably from Bill to Bill, but has to provide for oral evidence sessions for most Bills. Broadly speaking, all programmed Government Bills which start in the Commons are likely to have one or more oral evidence sessions before the Committee begins clause by clause consideration. These may be provided for in some detail in the programming motion, including times and names of witnesses.
27.10 As for how the programme motion provides for clause by clause consideration, on minor Bills the Programming Sub-Committee may simply have to suggest the order of consideration and the number of Committee sittings required to deal with the business, the time at which those meetings will take place and the time for conclusion of proceedings at the last meeting. On others, the order of consideration and the business for each sitting may be specified in detail. For larger Bills there are usually regular ‘knives’ to ensure that all parts of the Bill are dealt with in the time allotted. ‘Knives’ are the cut-off points at which debate on particular sections of the Bill must be completed. Importantly, these affect votes as well as debates.
27.11 Departmental officials do not attend meetings of Programming Committees or Sub-Committees, which meet in private and whose proceedings are not recorded verbatim, although Parliamentary Counsel may attend. The Whip and the Minister will take the lead. The draft resolution is subject to change, depending on the views of the Opposition. As long as the overall ‘envelope’ or out-date from Committee remains unchanged, there is considerable flexibility. If Bill Ministers and Whips on the Committee think changes are needed which would affect the total time allotted or the out-date, they should discuss this with the Government Whips' Office.
The operation of the programme resolution in Committee
27.12 A motion to give effect to the resolution of the Programming Sub-Committee is usually considered by the Public Bill Committee when it first meets. This is debatable for up to half an hour. The Committee will then proceed to take oral evidence (if applicable) and consider the Bill in the order agreed.
27.13 When a knife falls the Chairman will put the question then before the Committee, followed by other questions necessary to dispose of proceedings (clauses and Schedules stand part and Government amendments). These questions are ‘bundled together’ so that the questions put to the Committee are as few as possible.
27.14 Opposition amendments may be divided on, if they have already been debated and the Chairman has indicated that s/he will allow separate division.
27.15 Public Bill Committees have the power to send for persons, papers and records relating to the Bill, which would also need to be programmed.
Revising the timetable agreed for Committee
27.16 It is possible to revise the timetables originally agreed by the Public Bill Committee. The Programming Sub-Committee may meet – perhaps during a brief suspension of the Committee – to agree a change to the arrangements for oral evidence or the internal knives, and a motion is then moved in Committee to give effect to the resolution. If no member of the Committee objects, such a variation motion may be agreed without the need for a Programming Sub-Committee meeting.
27.17 If it is felt on all sides that the time allotted to proceedings in Committee is too short, a meeting of the Programming Sub-Committee may be arranged to consider a resolution proposing a change in the out-date. If the Public Bill Committee agrees, the resolution will be reported to the House and a supplemental programme motion must be put to the House within five sitting days. If the supplemental programme motion gives effect to the Committee's recommendations, it is taken without debate (unless it reduces the amount of time already allocated to the proceedings); otherwise it is debatable for not more than 45 minutes.
27.18 Alternatively, the Government may simply table a supplemental programme motion extending the out-date without any need for a resolution from the Public Bill Committee.
27.19 Some Government amendments are necessary. However, amendments can also create the impression that a bill has not been properly prepared, they may hinder the progress of a bill, unnecessarily take up Parliamentary time and cause ill-feeling in Parliament. In particular, too many amendments slowing down a number of bills can jeopardise the entire legislative programme, given the extremely limited amount of Parliamentary time. Even if amendments by themselves are small and uncontroversial and unlikely to take up much time, their cumulative impact can be serious. Government amendments to bills after introduction must therefore be kept to a minimum and will only be agreed by Legislation (L) Committee if they are considered essential to ensure that the bill works, to avoid a Government defeat or otherwise significantly ease handling in Parliament.
27.20 When a bill is put forward to L Committee for clearance to be introduced to Parliament, one of the key questions Committee members will ask the Bill Minister and Parliamentary Counsel is whether the bill is fully ready to be introduced. This is not a formality. If the Committee is not satisfied on this point and feels that there is still policy development or drafting needed which may result in Government amendments after the bill’s introduction, the Committee can and does refuse clearance for a bill to be introduced. This can not only delay a bill but may result in its losing its slot altogether in that year’s legislative programme. It is therefore essential that departments ensure all the policy for the bill is settled several months before introduction so that they can instruct Parliamentary Counsel, in tranches if necessary, between May and the beginning of September, at the very latest, before a bill is to be introduced. By this point, all new policy areas which may be proposed for a bill should be resisted as any request to L Committee for drafting authority will almost certainly be refused.
27.21 Once a bill has been introduced to Parliament, Government amendments and acceptance of Opposition amendments must first receive clearance from L Committee and the relevant policy committee through writing to the chair of the Committee with a fully completed template (see annex). It is almost inevitable that departments will want to make some amendments to bills after introduction, to correct errors not previously spotted or to make a concession to address serious concerns raised during debate. In considering whether to give clearance to amendments, the Committee will consider each amendment in the light of the overriding concern – whether amendments would help or hinder both the passage of the bill and the legislative programme as a whole. The Committee will seek to strike an appropriate balance between making the bill perfect and getting it to Royal Assent.
27.22 Amendments can be classified into four main types:
27.23 Amendments which are agreed to be minor and technical by L Secretariat, on the advice of Parliamentary Counsel and the Whips, do not need to formally seek L Committee clearance through a letter. However, departments should never assume that an amendment is minor and technical. Also where departments write for clearance for other types of amendments, the template (see annex) asks for an indication of the total number of amendments that are proposed to be tabled and this number should still include minor and technical amendments to give the overall picture. L Committee will not permit any amendments after Committee Stage in either House unless the Bill Minister can satisfy the Committee that they fall within the above definition of concessionary. All amendments which are given clearance for Committee Stage, but which for any reason are not tabled at that Stage, must be brought back to L Committee before they can be tabled at a later stage – when the same considerations will apply in terms of only concessionary amendments being permitted.
27.24 At Committee Stage, any non-concessionary amendments must be shown by the Bill Minister to be essential. No purely desirable amendments will be cleared at any stage of the bill’s passage through Parliament. Desirable amendments must wait for a separate legislative opportunity. This could either be through a bid as part of a bill for the following session in the normal way or, for a small and discrete area which is unlikely to get Government time, it could be put forward as a handout bill for a backbencher to take through with Government support. The table below summarises this guidance:
|
Stage |
Amendments permitted | ||
| Desirable | Essential | Concessionary | |
| After Introduction | No | Yes | Yes |
| After Committee Stage | No | No | Yes |
27.25 In considering whether to seek clearance for Government amendments, departments and bill ministers should consider the above guidance carefully and should not waste L Committee’s time by putting forward amendments which are purely desirable or even, after Committee Stage, amendments which are essential, unless there is a particularly compelling case. Letters seeking clearance must also always include the fully completed template (see annex) which will ensure that all amendments are clearly classified as either essential or concessionary and should provide a justification as to why the amendments fall into one of these two categories. The description in the template should also describe what the amendment would do, without recourse to legal jargon or references to clauses, aimed at a reader who is unfamiliar with the bill or the policy area. Clearance letters which do not include such a fully completed template will automatically be refused clearance.
27.26 Bill teams should alert Legislation Secretariat to any proposed amendments at the earliest possible stage and, in any case, before the Bill Minister writes to L Committee seeking clearance. L Secretariat is always happy to advise departments on which category amendments fall into and to comment on letters in draft before they are submitted. However, even if no other member of L Committee objects to a particular amendment, L Secretariat will scrutinise all requests for clearance and will advise the Committee Chair to refuse clearance for all or some amendments if they either do not comply with this guidance or if they do not sufficiently justify an amendment to enable a judgement to be made.
27.27 Departments should always aim to table amendments at least one sitting week before they are due to be debated, especially in the Lords. This convention is in place to ensure that Members/Peers have sufficient time to consider the amendments before they are debated and the Government is likely to be criticised if it does not adhere to it. Departments should also wherever possible allow 10 working days for collective agreement, and 15 working days where any part of the period falls within recess, or justify why this was not possible. In addition, departments should allow at least 24 hours from the period that they submit a completed ring round sheet to Legislation Secretariat and when they wish to lay the amendment(s).
27.28 As programmes are intended to provide reasonable time for discussion of legislation, the usual channels, including the Bill Whip, and, through them, Opposition parties, will need to be kept abreast of the likely scale of Government amendments. It is important therefore that there is good communication about amendments between the Bill team, Parliamentary Branch and the Government Whips' Office, throughout the Bill's passage.
27.29 If the Government brings forward significantly more amendments than were expected, the Opposition will have cause for complaint. The Government should avoid having repeatedly to revise programmes because significant Government amendments were not signalled at the relevant stages. It will be particularly important to predict the number of amendments likely on Report.
27.30 Officials should be assessing what Government amendments (if any) are needed on Report, how controversial the Bill has been, and what amendments the Opposition are likely to propose. They should ensure their Parliamentary Branch and Whip are involved in any discussion.
27.31 The department should be able to give an assessment of whether the time initially allowed for remaining stages is adequate. A key determinant will be the number of Government amendments; the more there are, and the more they deal with matters not debated in Committee, the more time is likely to be required.
27.32 An extension to the time allowed for remaining stages can be altered by tabling a supplemental Programme Motion. This may be triggered by a recommendation of the Public Bill Committee, following a resolution of the Programming Sub-Committee. Alternatively, the Government can simply table a supplemental Programme Motion following discussion in the usual channels.
Remaining stages when a Bill is taken in Committee of the whole House
27.33 If the Bill is not amended in Committee of the whole House there will be no Report stage. If no amendments are expected, the initial Programme Motion should allocate enough time to remaining stages for a Third Reading, taken alone. In that case, there would be no need for a supplemental programme motion.
27.34 It is usual for the provisions for a Programme Committee for remaining stages to be disapplied, with the equivalent provision being made directly by a freestanding programme motion.
27.35 If, however, there is a Report stage, the Programming Committee may meet. It would be helpful to have all, or at least the majority, of Government amendments tabled before such a meeting. Parliamentary Counsel will provide a draft resolution. Whatever is agreed will be reported to the House, and may be debated for 45 minutes.
Consideration of Lords Amendments
27.36 The level of detail in the programme motion will depend on discussion between the Usual Channels. Again Opposition priorities for debate should be identified and if possible respected.
Allocation of time order (the ‘Guillotine’)
27.37 In exceptional circumstances, where a Bill has not been programmed and agreement between the parties on the timetable of a Bill cannot be reached or breaks down, and to ensure that proceedings on a Bill are completed by a certain date, or when it is intended to timetable all proceedings (including Second Reading) in advance, the Government may move an “allocation of time” order, commonly known as a “guillotine”. The motion would be drafted by Parliamentary Counsel and proposed by a Minister. Standing Order No. 83 provides that the debate on a guillotine motion is limited to three hours.
27.38 The main purpose of such an order is to prescribe, or arrange through the agency of a Business Committee or Business Sub-committee of the Public Bill Committee, the time within which various stages of the Bill (or, in Committee, clauses of the Bill) must be dealt with. Those clauses not discussed when the allocated time is up, together with all amendments to those clauses moved by a Minister, then have to be put to the vote without discussion.
27.39 A Business Committee consists of the Chairman of Ways and Means and not more than eight members (normally Ministers, Government Whips and leading members of the Opposition concerned with the Bill). The function of the Committee is to divide up the Bill as it thinks best and apply a timetable in detail. The Business Committee performs its function for the Committee stage of Bills committed to a Committee of the whole House, and for the Report stage of all Bills to which a guillotine applies.
27.40 A Business Sub-Committee of the Public Bill Committee consists of the Chairman of the Public Bill Committee and seven of its members, and performs the same function in respect of the Public Bill Committee proceedings. The Business Committees and Sub-Committees meet in private, joined by Parliamentary Counsel and a Clerk. Parliamentary Counsel supplies a draft resolution to be proposed by the Minister, suggesting a division of the Bill with appropriate times.
27.41 When a Business Committee or Sub-Committee comes to a resolution, the resolution is reported to the House or the Committee as the case may be, and is put to the House or the Committee for endorsement without amendment or debate.
27.42 If Consideration of Lords Amendments is guillotined, the necessary order is normally made under powers contained in the original order to supplement its provisions. The original order usually limits debate on such a supplemental order to one hour. Any division of the Bill into parts for the purposes of the guillotine would be contained in the supplemental order.
27.43 Guillotine motions are used only in exceptional circumstances, and the Leader of the House of Commons' Office and the Government Whips' Office should be consulted in the first instance.
ANNEX TEMPLATE FOR INCLUSION WITH ALL L COMMITTEE CLEARANCE LETTERS:|
Name of Bill: |
||
| Stage Reached in which House: | ||
| Date clearance for amendments requested: | ||
| Date colleagues given to respond (must be 10 working days later wherever possible or otherwise explain why shorter): | ||
| Date amendments need to be tabled (to allow a week before the next stage of the Bill): | ||
| Number of Government amendments already tabled since the Bill was introduced: | ||
| Total number of amendments sought (including minor and technical amendments which do not need L Committee clearance provided they have been agreed with L Secretariat): | ||
| Are you satisfied that each of the proposed amendments is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights? | ||
| Brief description and reason for each significant amendment: | State whether each amendment is either concessionary or essential to make the bill work, and explain why: | Territorial extent of each amendment: |