Clear the Lobby: What Laws are MPs voting on this week? W/C 24th October 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,

Parliamentary business is overshadowed again this week.

There’s the small issue of who our next prime minister will be. It’s (thankfully) a quick process, so we’ll find out this week. But that creates a strange situation where ministers answering questions in the Commons may not be in post next week.

But some major lawmaking is still set to happen.

Probably most notably is the government bill to scrap all EU law that isn’t incorporated into UK law by the end of next year. It’s a huge endeavour and the implications will be far reaching.

Friday brings private members’ bills.

As ever, most won’t be heard before 2.30pm comes round. Last week MPs managed three bills before running out of time and adjourning debate on a fourth.

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

Sebastian (@sebastiansalek)

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MONDAY 24 OCTOBER

Supply and Appropriation (Adjustments) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Authorises government spending until 2024.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (Reduction) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England
Cuts stamp duty (the tax you pay when buying a residential property. Increases the threshold at which stamp duty is paid to £250,000 from £125,000.
Commons Library briefing

TUESDAY 25 OCTOBER

NHS Prescriptions (Drug Tariff Labelling) Bill
Requires community pharmacies and other providers of NHS-funded prescriptions to put Drug Tariff values on labels (the amount the NHS repays pharmacies for generic prescriptions). Ten minute rule motion presented by Craig Mackinlay.

Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Revokes all EU laws that still apply in the UK on 31 December 2023 unless MPs codify them into EU law. Some laws can be revoked at a later date (until 32 June 2026) if a consensus to delay is reached.
Draft bill (PDF) / Commons Library briefing

WEDNESDAY 26 OCTOBER

Consumer Telephone Service Standards Bill
Introduces maximum waiting times for customers who contact utility providers by phone, with penalties for companies that don’t comply. Ten minute rule motion presented by Robert Halfon.

Identity and Language (Northern Ireland) Bill – committee stage, report stage, and 3rd reading
Applies to: Northern Ireland
Gives the Irish language official recognition in Northern Ireland, and requires an Irish Language Commissioner to promote its use by public authorities. Creates a second commissioner role to promote Ulster Scots language and culture, among other things. Started in the Lords.
Draft bill (PDF) / Commons Library briefing

THURSDAY 27 OCTOBER

No votes scheduled

FRIDAY 28 OCTOBER

Co-operatives, Mutuals and Friendly Societies Bill – 2nd reading
Modernise the laws governing co-operatives, mutual insurers, and friendly societies. Private members’ bill presented by Mark Hendrick.

Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland
Requires employers to consult with workers before rejecting a request for flexible working, among other things. Private members’ bill presented by Yasmin Qureshi.
Draft bill (PDF)

Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill – 2nd reading
Enables the making of arrangements for the collection of child support maintenance in cases involving domestic abuse. Private members’ bill presented by Sally-Ann Hart.

Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (Amendment) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales
Extends the right of public access to the countryside, including to woodlands, the Green Belt, waters, and more grasslands. Private members’ bill presented by Caroline Lucas.
Draft bill (PDF)

Asylum Seekers (Permission to Work) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Gives 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)

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.

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.

Anonymity of Suspects Bill – 2nd reading
Creates an offence of disclosing the identity of a person who is the subject of an investigation. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

Covid-19 Vaccine Damage Payments Bill – 2nd reading
Requires the government to improve the diagnosis and treatment of people who have suffered ill effects from Covid-19 vaccines. Provides for financial assistance to people who have become disabled after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine, and to the next of kin of people who have died shortly after, among other things. Private members’ bill presented by Christopher Chope.

NHS England (Alternative Treatment) Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales
Gives patients access to alternative non-NHS England treatment if they’ve waited for more than one year for hospital treatment. Private members’ bill presented by Chris Stephens.
Draft bill (PDF)

Decarbonisation and Economic Strategy Bill – 2nd reading
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland
Introduces a “Green New Deal”, a ten-year plan to transition away from carbon. Private members’ bill presented by Caroline Lucas.
Draft bill (PDF)

Elected Representative (Prohibition of Deception) Bill – 2nd reading
Makes lying a criminal offence for full-time elected politicians. Private member’s bill presented by Liz Saville Roberts.

Pets (Microchips) Bill – 2nd reading
Requires local authorities to scan a deceased cat’s microchip and try to return it to its owner before disposing of it. Requires vets to confirm the person presenting a healthy animal to be euthanised is its registered owner. They must also check the microchip for details of previous owners and offer the animal to them before proceeding. Also known as Gizmo’s law and Tuk’s law. Private members’ bill presented by James Daly.

Supply of Drugs to Children Under 16 (Aggravated Offence) Bill – 2nd reading
Makes the criminal offence of supplying or offering to supply a controlled drug an aggravated offence (meaning the punishment is harsher) if the person being supplied or offered the drug is under 16. Private members’ bill by Kevin Hollinrake.

Bus Services Bill – 2nd reading
Requires every town with a population of more than 10,000 to have a regular bus service operating seven days a week, serving local health services including hospitals and GP surgeries. Private members’ bill presented by Helen Morgan.

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.

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

LAST WEEK’S VOTES

Passed

• Financial Investment and Deforestation Bill – goes to second reading
• Energy Prices Bill – goes to Lords
• Working Time Regulations (Amendment) Bill – goes to second reading
• Public Order Bill – goes to Lords
• Energy Costs (Pre-Payment Meters and Social Tariffs) Bill – goes to second reading
• Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill – goes to committee
• Carer’s Leave Bill – goes to committee
• Worker Protection (Amendment of the Equality Act 2010) Bill – goes to committee

Postponed

• All other private members’ bills

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