Clear the Lobby: What Laws are MPs voting on this week? W/C 21st February 2022

Welcome to our weekly feature courtesy of Sebastian Salek, the brains behind Clear the Lobby, working to bring you all the laws MPs are voting on this week, and explained in plain English!

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Hey team,

MPs are back on Monday from recess, and there’s a lot to do.

The end of the parliamentary year is looming – the government is likely to prorogue Parliament at the end of April – and big pieces of legislation like the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill haven’t been passed yet.

That time pressure could force the government to back down on some of the more controversial aspects of bills to get them through.

The focus in the Commons this week is on education.

The Skills and Post-16 Education Bill, which reforms the technical education system, nears the end of its parliamentary journey.

And momentum to oust Boris Johnson seems to have slowed.

A week away from Parliament has allowed the focus to fall on other issues, like Storm Eunice and the situation in Ukraine.

It’ll be for Labour to change that, both at PMQs and during their Opposition Day debate on Wednesday.

Until next week. In the meantime, feel free to tweet me, or just reply to this email.

Sebastian (@sebastiansalek)

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MONDAY 21 FEBRUARY

Skills and Post-16 Education Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland (part), Northern Ireland (part)
Reforms the technical education system. Introduces a lifelong loan entitlement, which enables people to retrain throughout their lives. Enables employers and training providers to work together to make sure skills provision meets local needs. Gives the government more power to intervene where colleges don’t meet local needs, among other things. Started in the Lords.
Draft bill (PDF) / Commons Library briefing

TUESDAY 22 FEBRUARY

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (Status) Bill
Gives the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association corporate status and certain other privileges and immunities. Ten minute rule motion presented by Ian Liddell-Grainger.

Charities Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Applies to: England, Wales
Makes a number of technical changes to charities law, based on a report by the Law Commission in 2017. Areas covered include changing governing documents, payments to trustees, using funds raised in connection to a specific campaign for other purposes, permanent endowments, and selling off charity land.
Draft bill (PDF) / Lords Library briefing

Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
In 2015 the government reformed public sector pension schemes, but gave those close to retirement age the option to stick with their existing scheme. A court ruling found that this was discriminatory towards younger workers in the judiciary and fire service. This law extends that choice to all public sector workers between 2015 and 2022. Started in the Lords.
Draft bill (PDF) / Commons Library briefing

WEDNESDAY 23 FEBRUARY

Energy Pricing (Off Gas Grid Households) Bill
Requires the government and Ofgem to propose measures to ensure that households without access to mains gas supply don’t have to pay more for energy. Ten minute rule motion presented by Drew Hendry.

THURSDAY 24 FEBRUARY

No votes scheduled

FRIDAY 25 FEBRUARY

Reminder: time will only allow for a few private members’ bills to be heard

Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Criminalises marriage or civil partnerships for people under of 18. Revokes the ability for parents to permit marriages of children aged 16-18 by giving their consent. Private members’ bill presented by Pauline Latham.

Pension Schemes (Conversion of Guaranteed Minimum Pensions) Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Applies to: England (part), Wales (part), Scotland (part), Northern Ireland (part)
Clarifies existing legislation to streamline the process of GMP conversion (moving people with a guaranteed minimum pension onto an ordinary scheme). Private members’ bill presented by Margaret Ferrier.
Draft bill (PDF)

Local Authority Boundaries (Referendums) Bill – 2nd reading
Allows parliamentary constituencies to split away and form their own local authority, if agreed by referendum. Private members’ bill presented by Robbie Moore. More information here.

City of Bradford (Referendum on Shipley and Keighley) Bill – 2nd reading
Allows for a referendum on whether the Shipley and Keighley constituencies should continue to be part of the City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council area. Private members’ bill presented by Philip Davies. More information here.

Human Trafficking (Sentencing) Bill – 2nd reading
Sets new penalties for human trafficking offences. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone. More information not yet available.

Rule of Law (Enforcement by Public Authorities) Bill – 2nd reading
Rrequires public authorities to investigate breaches of the law, and take enforcement action. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Bereavement Leave and Pay (Stillborn and Miscarried Babies) Bill – 2nd reading
Extends statutory bereavement leave to parents whose babies are miscarried or stillborn during early pregnancy. Currently it only applies after 24 weeks of pregnancy. Private members’ bill presented by Sarah Owen.

Energy Pricing Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland
Bans energy companies from offer better prices to new customers compared to existing ones, among other things. Private members’ bill presented by Martyn Day.
Draft bill (PDF)

Devolution (Employment) (Scotland) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: Scotland
Devolves employment matters in Scotland.
Draft bill (PDF)

Asylum Seekers (Permission to Work) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Grants asylum seekers permission to work if they have waited six months for a decision on their asylum application. Private members’ bill presented by Carol Monaghan.
Draft bill (PDF)

House of Lords (Elected Senate) Bill – 2nd reading
Replaces the House of Lords with an elected senate. Private members’ bill presented by Paul Maynard.

Pensions (Extension of Automatic Enrolment) Bill – 2nd reading
Extends automatic pension enrolment to all workers aged 18 or over, regardless of how much they earn. Currently it’s applicable to those aged at least 22, earning a minimum of £10,000 a year. Private members’ bill presented by Richard Holden.

Digitally Altered Body Images Bill – 2nd reading
Requires advertisers, broadcasters and publishers to show a certain logo when images of human bodies or body parts have had their proportions digitally altered. Private members’ bill presented by Luke Evans.

Immigration (Health and Social Care Staff) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Grants indefinite leave to remain to health and social care staff. Private members’ bill presented by Christine Jardine.
Draft bill (PDF)

Prisons (Violence) Bill – 2nd reading
Places a duty on the Prison and Probation Service and private prison operators to minimise violence in prisons. Private members’ bill presented by Grahame Morris.

Kinship Care (Parental Leave) Bill – 2nd reading
Entitles kinship carers (people who take responsibility for children whose parents are unable to care for them) to the same level of parental leave as parents. Private members’ bill presented by Katherine Fletcher.

Planning and Local Representation Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England and Wales
Aims to improve the process of creating development plans (documents written by local planning authorities setting out how an area should look in the future). Gives people who comment or object to them the right to take part in examination hearings (part of the independent scrutiny process). Requires public consultation on development plans. Gives local authorities the power to apply local design standards for permitted development and to refuse permitted development proposals that would be detrimental to the health and wellbeing of an individual or community. Makes planning permission for major housing schemes contingent on work starting within two years. Private members’ bill presented by Rachel Hopkins.
Draft bill (PDF)

Pedicabs (London) Bill – 2nd reading
Regulates pedicabs to the same degree as taxis and private hire services. Requires drivers to have a licence from Transport for London to operate, and gives TfL the power to regulate prices and vehicles used. Private members’ bill presented by Nickie Aiken.

Hares (Closed Season) Bill – 2nd reading
Bans the killing or taking of hares during breeding season. Private members’ bill presented by Richard Fuller.

Abuse of Public-Facing Workers (Offences) Bill – 2nd reading
Creates a new criminal offence of verbally or physically abusing a frontline worker. Private members’ bill presented by Olivia Blake. More information here.

Electricity Grid (Review) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government and Ofgem to conduct a review of the electricity network grid. Issues to consider include abolishing price differences based on geography; the current charging system is built on the assumption that electricity is generated by oil, gas, coal and nuclear plants near big cities, which means offshore wind farms pay much more to connect to the grid. Private members’ bill presented by Alan Brown. More information here.

Schools and Educational Settings (Essential Infrastructure and Opening During Emergencies) Bill – 2nd reading
Classifies educational settings (including early years, schools, colleges and universities) as essential infrastructure that should remain open to all students during public health and other national emergencies. Private members’ bill presented by Robert Halfon.

Medical Cannabis (Access) Bill – 2nd reading
Aims to improve access to medical cannabis, much of which is still bought privately. Private members’ bill presented by Jeff Smith.

Social Housing (Emergency Protection of Tenants Rights) Bill – 2nd reading
Gives social housing tenants the right to continued secure tenancy if they have to move because of a threat to their personal safety, or that of someone in their household. Private members’ bill presented by Helen Hayes.

Ministerial Interests (Emergency Powers) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires ministers to make an oral statement to Parliament if a contract is awarded under emergency statutory powers to a person or company in which they have a personal, political or financial interest. Private members’ bill presented by Owen Thompson.

Child Criminal Exploitation Bill – 2nd reading
Makes involvement in child criminal exploitation an aggravating factor in sentencing for drug supply, production, importation and money laundering offences, meaning a stricter sentence is likely. Also makes being a victim of child criminal exploitation a mitigating factor in sentencing for these offences. Private members’ bill presented by Lyn Brown

Evictions (Universal Credit) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to prevent the evictions of Universal Credit claimants who are behind on rent. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Housing Standards (Refugees and Asylum Seekers) Bill – 2nd reading
Introduces national minimum standards in accommodation offered to refugees and asylum seekers. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Asylum Seekers (Permission to Work) No. 2 Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Grants asylum seekers permission to work if they have waited six months for a decision on their asylum application. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.
Draft bill (PDF)

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (Powers) Bill – 2nd reading
Allows the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to identify and investigate systemic problems in the benefits system and make relevant recommendations to the  government. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Under-Occupancy Penalty (Report) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to report on the merits of repealing the so-called “bedroom tax” (a cut in benefits for those living in a council or housing association property deemed to have one or more spare bedrooms). Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Social Security Benefits (Healthy Eating) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to publish annual calculations of the benefit and tax credit rates needed for a representative household to afford to buy meals in accordance with the Eatwell Guide to eating healthily. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Benefit Sanctions (Warnings) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires benefit claimants to be given warnings before they are sanctioned. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Universal Credit Sanctions (Zero Hours Contracts) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland
Prevents a Universal Credit claimant from being sanctioned for refusing work on a zero-hours contract. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.
Draft bill

Asylum Seekers (Accommodation Eviction Procedures) Bill – 2nd reading
Allows asylum seekers to challenge a proposed eviction in an independent court or tribunal. Establishes asylum seeker accommodation eviction procedures for public authorities. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Disability Benefit Assessments (Recording) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to allow Disability Benefit applicants to have their eligibility assessment recorded on audio. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Full Employment Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the chancellor to pursue a policy of full employment (one definition is when there are more vacancies than people seeking jobs). Creates an employment guarantee scheme for benefit claimants who have been unemployed and looking for work for longer than six months. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Health and Safety at Work Bill – 2nd reading
Amend the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 to make provision about civil liability for breaches of health and safety duties. More information not yet available. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Corporate Homicide Bill – 2nd reading
Makes changes to the criminal offence of corporate homicide. More information not yet published. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Workers (Rights and Definition) Bill – 2nd reading
Establishes a legal definition of employment, which includes zero-hours contracts and agency workers. The aim is to prevent abuse of people working under these arrangements. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.

Ministerial Disclosure (Fixed Penalty Notices) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires ministers to disclose whether they have been issued with a fixed penalty notice. This would force Boris Johnson to say in the future whether he’s been fined for breaking Covid rules. Private members’ bill presented by Alistair Carmichael.

Homeless People (Current Accounts) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires banks to provide current accounts for homeless people seeking work. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Electoral Candidates (Age) Bill – 2nd reading
Changes the minimum age of candidates in parliamentary and local elections to age 18 on the day of the election. It’s currently age 18 at time of nomination. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Leader of the House of Commons (Election) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires MPs to elect the leader of the House of Commons. The prime minister may nominate someone who must be from the governing party. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Human Trafficking (Child Protection) Bill – 2nd reading
Creates safe houses for children who have been the victims of trafficking. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Prime Minister (Temporary Replacement) Bill – 2nd reading
Sets out a succession plan if the prime minister is temporarily unable to carry out their duties, for example because of illness. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Business of the House Commission Bill – 2nd reading
Creates a Business of the House Commission to regulate the timetabling of business in the House of Commons. This is currently done by the government, so the effect would be taking those decisions out of political hands. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

BBC Licence Fee (Abolition) Bill – 2nd reading
Abolishes the licence fee and makes the BBC a subscription service. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

Electoral Commission (Abolition) Bill – 2nd reading
Abolishes the Electoral Commission. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.

General Election (Leaders’ Debates) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Sets up a commission to make arrangements for debates between leaders of political parties during a General Election. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.
Draft bill (PDF)

Hospitals (Parking Charges and Business Rates) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England and Wales
Bans NHS hospitals from charging patients and visitors for car parking. Makes NHS hospitals exempt from business rates. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.
Draft bill

Asylum Seekers (Return to Safe Countries) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Requires asylum seekers who have arrived in the UK from a safe country to be returned immediately to that country. Private members’ bill presented by Peter Bone.
Draft bill (PDF)

Registers of Births and Deaths Bill – report stage and 3rd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland (part), Northern Ireland (part)
Introduces an electronic register for recording births and deaths. Currently they are also recorded on paper, and this bill removes that aspect. Private members’ bill presented by Saqib Bhatti.
Draft bill (PDF)

National Health Service Co-Funding and Co-Payment Bill – 2nd reading
Extends co-payment (paying for treatment at the point of service like going to the dentist) to more NHS services in England. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Plastics (Wet Wipes) Bill – 2nd reading
Bans the manufacture and sale of wet wipes containing plastic. Private members’ bill presented by Fleur Anderson.

Mobile Homes Act 1983 (Amendment) Bill – 2nd reading
Amends the Mobile Homes Act 1983. More information not yet available. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Flooding (Prevention and Insurance) Bill – 2nd reading
A wide-ranging bill tightening the law around flood prevention. Sets national minimum requirements for flood mitigation and protection measures in new-build properties. Requires local and national government to report on flood-prevention measures. Establishes a certification scheme for flood prevention and mitigation work to properties, and an accreditation scheme for installers. Private members’ bill presented by Emma Hardy.

Climate Change Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to declare a climate emergency and bring forward its deadline for hitting net-zero carbon emissions, among other things. Private members’ bill presented by Colum Eastwood. More information here.

Copyright (Rights and Remuneration of Musicians, Etc.) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Aims to improve rights for musicians. Measures include splitting streaming revenues fairly between labels and artists (which is already the case for broadcast usage), as well as giving artists more information on the revenue generated by their work, and the ability to adjust existing contracts if the amount paid for work is found to be unfair. Private members’ bill presented by Kevin Brennan.
Draft bill (PDF)

NHS England (Alternative Treatment) Bill – 2nd reading
Entitles patients to non-NHS treatment if they have been on a waiting list for more than a year. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 (Amendment) Bill – 2nd reading
Amends the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 to change the law around parliamentary scrutiny of lockdowns. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Caravan Sites Bill – 2nd reading
Removes the requirement for planning permission when applying for a caravan site licence. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Public Sector Exit Payments (Limitation) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Caps exit payments made to outgoing employees of public sector organisations. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.
Draft bill

Regulatory Impact Assessments Bill – 2nd reading
Requires a Regulatory Impact Assessment (a specific method for analysing policy) to be published for all primary and secondary legislation introduced by the government. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Illegal Immigration (Offences) Bill – 2nd reading
Creates new offences for people who have entered the UK illegally, or have overstayed their visas. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

BBC Licence Fee Non-Payment (Decriminalisation for Over-75s) Bill – 2nd reading
Decriminalises non-payment of the licence fee by over-75s. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Green Belt (Protection) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England and Wales
Establishes a national register of green belt land in England. Restricts the ability of local authorities to de-designate green belt land. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.
Draft bill

Covid-19 Vaccine Damage Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Requires the government to establish an independent review of disablement caused by Covid-19 vaccinations, and the adequacy of the compensation offered to the people affected. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.
Draft bill (PDF)

Want more?
Check your MP’s voting record and read the day’s debates at TheyWorkForYou.

LAST WEEK’S VOTES

Passed

• Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Bill – became law
• Motor Vehicle Tests (Diesel Particulate Filters) Bill – goes to second reading
• Seals (Protection) Bill – goes to second reading

Click here to read details of the bills in last week’s newsletter.