A private member's bill is a
bill (proposed law)
A bill is proposed legislation under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature as well as, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an '' ...
introduced into a
legislature
A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the
executive branch
The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a State (polity), state.
In poli ...
. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most
Westminster system jurisdictions, in which a "private member" is any
member of parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) who is not a member of the
cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
(executive). Other labels may be used for the concept in other parliamentary systems; for example, the label member's bill is used in the
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyro ...
and the
New Zealand Parliament, the term private senator's bill is used in the
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives (Australia), House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Chapter ...
, and the term public bill is used in the
Senate of Canada
The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada.
The Senate is modelled after the B ...
. In legislatures where the executive does not have the
right of initiative, such as the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
, the concept does not arise since bills are always introduced by legislators (or sometimes by
popular initiative).
In the Westminster system, most bills are "
government bills" introduced by the executive, with private members' bills the exception; however, some time is set aside in the schedule for reading such bills. They may be introduced by non-ministerial MPs from government-supporting parties (
backbencher
In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...
s), by members of
opposition
Opposition may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars
* The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band
* ''The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Comed ...
parties (
frontbencher
In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then kno ...
or backbencher), or by
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
s or
crossbencher
A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...
s. The Israeli
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
has a long history of enacting private members' bills: a slight majority of the laws passed by it originated as private members' bills, and thousands more are introduced without being passed. In contrast, the
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:
*The President of Ireland
*The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...
(parliament) of the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
rarely passes private members' bills, with the overwhelming number of bills being passed being introduced by members of the cabinet.
A private member's bill is not to be confused with a
private bill, which is a bill that only affects an individual citizen or group.
Private member's bill by country
Australia
In Australia, a draft bill is prepared by Parliamentary Counsel, acting under instructions from the private member. After community consultation, the member introduces the bill into the Parliament.
Only 30 private members' bills or private senators' bills introduced into the
Australian Parliament since 1901 have been passed into law.
Of these, thirteen have been initiated by senators, ten by members and seven by the Speaker and Senate President. A larger number have passed one house but not the other. An even larger number did not pass the house in which they were introduced and thus lapsed.
Among the most notable of the successful bills was the Commonwealth Electoral Bill 1924, which introduced
compulsory voting
Compulsory voting, also called mandatory voting, is the requirement in some countries that eligible citizens register and vote in elections. Penalties might be imposed on those who fail to do so without a valid reason. According to the CIA World F ...
for federal elections. This was introduced by Senator for
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
Herbert Payne of the Nationalist Party on 16 July 1924, passed by the Senate on 23 July, passed by the House of Representatives on 24 July – both times with little debate – and given Royal Assent on 31 July. Despite much public debate ever since on the issue of compulsory voting, the legislation has never been repealed.
Another very notable private member's bill was the Euthanasia Laws Bill 1996, which deprived the Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory and Norfolk Island legislatures of the power to make laws permitting
euthanasia
Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering.
Different countries have different eut ...
. This was introduced by
Kevin Andrews, Member for Menzies, after the
Northern Territory Legislative Assembly had passed such a law, the
Rights of the Terminally Ill Act 1995. Although Andrews was a member of the
Liberal Party, members and senators were allowed a
conscience vote
A conscience vote or free vote is a type of vote in a legislative body where legislators are allowed to vote according to their own personal conscience rather than according to an official line set down by their political party. In a parliamenta ...
on the issue, and each side of the debate was supported by members and senators from all political parties.
A private member's bill, the
, legalised
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
throughout Australia on 9 December 2017. It was introduced by
Dean Smith
Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hi ...
, Senator for Western Australia.
Notable also was the private member's bill introduced by
Alan Corbett
Alan Gordon Corbett (born 6 April 1954) is a former Australian politician. Originally a teacher, he was the founder of A Better Future for Our Children, a New South Wales political party. In 1995, he was elected to the New South Wales Legislative ...
in the
New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...
to amend the Crimes Act of 1900. The first successfully enacted (or indeed introduced) bill in over 100 years to address the protection of children from abuse and excessive physical chastisement. It received very wide support from
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
organisations related to
child health and welfare and was backed by several prominent members of the medical profession, particularly in the
paediatric field, notably
John Yu
John Samuel Yu (; born 12 December 1934) is a Chinese-born Australian paediatrics doctor who served as CEO of the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children from 1979 until 1997. He was the Australian of the Year for 1996.
Early life and educatio ...
, CEO of
Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children,
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
(who had been honoured by the
Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...
with the prestigious
Australian of the Year
The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territo ...
award in 1996). Its initial aims were to limit physical chastisement by banning the use of implements (belts, sticks, hairbrushes, etc.), ban the use of force above the shoulders (thus preventing neck, head, brain and facial injuries), and require that any physical force applied leave only trivial and short-lived signs such as redness (that is, no bruising, swelling, welts, cuts, grazes, internal injuries, emotional trauma, etc.); with the exception of the clause banning the use of implements (which was dropped to gain essential support from the
state Labor Government for the bill), it was passed intact and became law in 2001.
Canada
In Canada, a private member's bill (french: projet de loi émanant d'un député) is a bill introduced in the
House of Commons by a member of parliament who is neither a cabinet minister nor a parliamentary secretary. A private member's bill follows the same legislative process as a government bill, but the time allocated for its consideration is restricted. Private members' bills may be considered only during one of the daily Private Members' Hours. Under rules established in 1986, 20 items of private members' business are selected at random to receive priority in debate. Six of these items are chosen by a committee to be votable and must come to a vote in the House. Prior to the 1986 rules, private members' bills and motions could be "talked out", meaning that all the time allocated to private members' bills could be used up introducing or debating bills without them ever being voted on, as each bill must be voted on after the second hour of debate. (The ramifications of the 1986 rules were discussed in the ''
Canadian Parliamentary Review
The ''Canadian Parliamentary Review'' is a quarterly publication of the Canadian Region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. The publication began as a newsletter known as the ''Canadian Regional Review'' in 1978 with a provisional six-me ...
'', 1988, Vol 11, No. 3.
) Even under the new rules, very few private members' bills become law. But passage is more likely in
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...
situations.
The vast majority of private members' bills that actually do become law are for the purpose of changing the name of the
riding represented by the MP introducing the bill.
When an election is called, all bills that have not been passed die on the order paper (that is, they are removed from the agenda of Parliament, and must be re-introduced in the new session of Parliament after an election). In the House of Commons (but not in the Senate), private members' bills remain on the order paper when Parliament is
prorogued
A legislative session is the period of time in which a legislature, in both parliamentary and presidential systems, is convened for purpose of lawmaking, usually being one of two or more smaller divisions of the entire time between two elections ...
.
Notable private members bills have been the following:
Passed
In the 98 years from 4 May 1910 to 7 September 2008, 229 private members' bills passed.
=Before the 1986 rules
=
* One of the bills passed under the old (pre-1986) rules was a 1964 private member's bill to rename "
Trans-Canada Airlines
Trans-Canada Air Lines (also known as TCA in English, and Trans-Canada in French) was a Canadian airline that operated as the country's flag carrier, with corporate headquarters in Montreal, Quebec. Its first president was Gordon Roy McGrego ...
" to "
Air Canada", introduced by then-rookie MP
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003.
Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...
. Chrétien got his bill voted on by convincing the other MPs scheduled to speak during Private Member's Hour to skip their speech and instead request an immediate vote on the bill.
=After the 1986 rules
=
The new rules took effect in 1986. In the 24 years between 5 November 1984 and 7 September 2008, 81 private members' bills passed.
Passage was (and is) more likely during the periods of
minority governments in Canada
In Canada's parliamentary system of responsible government, minority governments occur when no party has a majority of seats in the legislature. Typically, but not necessarily, the party with a plurality of seats forms the government. In a minorit ...
.
The ramifications of the 1986 rules and new probability of success of private members bills were discussed in the ''
Canadian Parliamentary Review
The ''Canadian Parliamentary Review'' is a quarterly publication of the Canadian Region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. The publication began as a newsletter known as the ''Canadian Regional Review'' in 1978 with a provisional six-me ...
'', 1988, Vol 11, No. 3.
*
NDP MP
Lynn McDonald
Lynn McDonald (born July 15, 1940) is a Canadian academic, climate activist and former Member of Parliament. She is a former president of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and was the New Democratic Party (NDP) Member of P ...
succeeded in getting her private member's bill, the "Non-smokers' Health Act" (aka Bill C-204), passed in 1986, (given
Royal Assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...
on 28 June 1988) restricting smoking in federally regulated workplaces and on airplanes, trains and ships. The bill was passed in a
free vote of the House of Commons despite being voted against by all members of the federal cabinet, including the Minister of Health.
Hong Kong
Article 74 of the
Hong Kong Basic Law
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China is a national law of China that serves as the organic law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Comprising nine chapters, 160 ...
prohibits private members' bills that relate to public expenditure, political structure or the operation of the
Government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
. Private members' bills that involve government policies must be agreed by the
Chief Executive. Whether the bill involves such issues are to be determined by the
Legislative Council President. For private members' bills proposed for the particular interest or benefit of any individual, association or body corporate, a fee of HK$33500 for amendment bills, and HK$67000 for principal bills must also be paid to the Director of Accounting Services.
India
Of the 300 or so private members' bills introduced in the 14th
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...
, barely 4% were discussed; 96% lapsed without even a single debate in the House. To date, Parliament has passed a total of 14 private members' bills.
Following are the 14 Private Members' Bills which were passed:-
#The Muslim Wakfs Bill introduced by Syed Md. Ahmed Kasmi in Lok Sabha
#The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill introduced by
Raghunath Singh in Lok Sabha
#The Indian Registration (Amendment) Bill introduced by
SC Samanta in Lok Sabha
#The Proceedings of Legislature (Protection of Publication) Bill introduced by Feroze Gandhi in Lok Sabha
#The Women's and Children's Institutions (Licensing) Bill introduced by Rajmata Kamlendu in Lok Sabha
#Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Declaration of National Importance) Bill introduced by Raghubir Sinh in
Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...
#The Hindu Marriage (Amendment) Bill introduced by Seeta Parmanand in Rajya Sabha
#The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill introduced by Subhadra Joshi in Lok Sabha
#The Orphanages and other Charitable Homes (Supervision and Control) Bill introduced by Kailash Bihari Lal in Rajya Sabha
#The Marine Insurance Bill introduced by MP Bhargava in Rajya Sabha
#The Hindu Marriage (Amendment) Bill introduced by Diwan Chand Sharma in Lok Sabha
#The Salaries and Allowances of MP (Amendment) Bill introduced by Raghunath Singh in Lok Sabha
#Indian Penal Code (Amendment) Bill introduced by Diwan Chand Lal in Rajya Sabha
#The SC (enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Bill introduced by Anand Narain in Lok Sabha
Five of these were passed in 1956 alone and after 47 years of passing the last bill, the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Bill, 1968 that became an Act on 9 August 1970; Rajya Sabha has passed the
Rights of Transgender Persons Bill, 2014
The Rights of Transgender Persons Bill, 2014 is a proposed Act of the Parliament of India which seeks to end the discrimination faced by transgender people in India. The Bill was passed by the upper house Rajya Sabha on 24 April 2015. It was ...
on April 24, 2015, which was introduced in the lower house, Lok Sabha on 26 February 2016.
Israel
In Israel, a private member's bill ( he, הצעת חוק פרטית) is a bill introduced in the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
by an MK who is neither a cabinet minister nor a deputy minister. The number of private members' bills an individual MK can submit is restricted, and their introduction requires approval by the Knesset Presidium (composed of the
Speaker of the Knesset and their deputies), who are allowed to reject bills which are racist in their essence or reject the Jewish character of the state.
Unlike government bills, which can be withdrawn at any point before their
third reading, a private member's bill cannot be withdrawn after its committee stage, which occurs between first and second readings. In addition, private members' bills must undergo a
preliminary reading, while government bills go to first reading directly when they are introduced.
Compared to other
Westminster system parliaments, the number of private members' bills introduced in the Knesset is very large: Between 2000 and 2016, the number of private members' bills introduced before the Knesset was 22,949, a world record.
However, this is a relatively recent phenomenon – while only 6% of laws passed by the
Third Knesset where introduced as private members' bills, the equivalent share for the
Fifteenth Knesset
Early general elections for both the Prime Minister and the Knesset were held in Israel on 17 May 1999 following a vote of no confidence in the government; the incumbent Likud Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ran for re-election.
This election ...
is 53%, a slight majority.
Malaysia
As of September 2021, there hasn't been a single record where a private member's bill was passed in the
Malaysian parliament
The Parliament of Malaysia ( ms, Parlimen Malaysia) is the national legislature of Malaysia, based on the Westminster system. The bicameral parliament consists of the Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives, lit. "People's Assembly") and the D ...
.
New Zealand
![Members bill biscuit tin, NZ Parliament](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Members_bill_biscuit_tin%2C_NZ_Parliament.jpg)
In
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, a member's bill (often misattributed as private member's bill) is one that is introduced by a member of Parliament who is not a minister. There can be a maximum of eight members' bills on the Order Paper awaiting their first reading at any one time. When a slot opens up, a ballot is held to select a new members' bill for introduction; each MP can submit only one member's bill at a time to the ballot. Every second Wednesday is reserved for debating members' bills, although this rule is overridden when certain government business is before the House, such as the Budget. Even when a Wednesday is devoted to members' bills, any private or local bills on the Order Paper are considered first.
The ballot to select new members' bills is conducted by drawing numbered counters out of a
biscuit tin
Biscuit tins are utilitarian or decorative containers used to package and sell biscuits (such as those served during tea) and some confectionery. Invented by Huntley & Palmers in 1831, they are commonly found in households in Great Britain, Irela ...
, purchased in the 1980s from now-defunct department store chain
DEKA. As a result, the member's bill process is nicknamed "biscuit tin democracy".
Starting with the
53rd Parliament (2020–23), a member's bill can be introduced directly if it has the support of at least 61 non-executive members of Parliament. This allows members' bills with broad support to avoid the ballot process, while excluding executive members prevents the member's bill process being an alternative way of progressing Government business.
Notable legislation passed as a result of a member's bill includes:
*
Adult Adoption Information Act 1985
An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...
– allowed adult adoptees to access information about their birth parents
*
Homosexual Law Reform Act 1986 – decriminalised homosexual acts between men
*
Prostitution Reform Act 2003
The Prostitution Reform Act 2003 is an Act of Parliament that decriminalised prostitution in New Zealand. The act also gave new rights to sex workers. It has attracted international attention, although its reception has been mixed. The Act rep ...
– decriminalised prostitution
*
Crimes (Substituted Section 59) Amendment Act 2007
The Crimes (Substituted Section 59) Amendment Act 2007 (formerly the Crimes (Abolition of Force as a Justification for Child Discipline) Amendment Bill) is an amendment to New Zealand's Crimes Act 1961 which removed the legal defence of "reasona ...
– removed "reasonable force" legal defence for assault of children by parents
*
Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act 2013 – legalised same-sex marriage
*
End of Life Choice Act 2019
The End of Life Choice Act 2019 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that seeks to give people with a terminal illness the option of receiving assisted dying. The Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Health confirmed that, "The Bill uses “a ...
– provided for a
binding referendum to give people with a terminal illness the option of requesting
assisted dying
Norway
In the
Parliament of Norway
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...
, any member may submit a private member's bill, called a representative's bill ( no, representantforslag lovvedtak).
[
][
] The other method of initiating legislation is by a "Proposition to the ''Storting''" from the
Government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom
House of Commons, there are several routes to introducing private members' bills. In each session, twenty backbench MPs are selected by
ballot to introduce a bill. These bills are given priority for debate and generally offer the best chance of success. Additional bills may be introduced via the
Ten Minute Rule
The Ten Minute Rule, also known as Standing Order No. 23, is a procedure in the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the introduction of Private Member's Bills in addition to the 20 per session normally permissible. It is one of the ways in whi ...
, although this is usually used just to raise an issue rather than legislate on it, or through presentation without debate under Standing Order 57. Neither Ten Minute Rule or presentation bills are likely to get time to be debated, so only non-controversial bills have any chance of success. Private members' bills from the Lords may also be adopted by an MP to complete their journey through Parliament.
Private members' bills can sometimes become the cause for much anxiety and shenanigans, as outside individuals or organisations seek to influence members who have been selected in the ballot.
There are two principal routes for influencing UK law:
*
Lobbying
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agency, regulatory agencie ...
a government department or minister.
* Lobbying a member of parliament who has a private member's bill coming up.
Only a small proportion of private members' bills are enacted. This is generally because of lack of time – a controversial private member's bill can be
"talked out". In some cases, measures that a government does not want to take responsibility for may be introduced by backbenchers, with the government secretly or openly backing the measure and ensuring its passage. They are sometimes known as "handouts" or "whips' bills". The
Abortion Act 1967 was enacted in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
through this means: with the Bill itself being introduced by a
Liberal Party Member of Parliament,
David Steel; through the support from Labour
Home Secretary
The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
Roy Jenkins
Roy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead, (11 November 1920 – 5 January 2003) was a British politician who served as President of the European Commission from 1977 to 1981. At various times a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lab ...
the Bill was given enough government time to allow a full debate.
Other private members' bills to have been enacted include the Adoption Act 1964, the
Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965, the
Charter Trustees Act 1985, the
Law Reform (Year and a Day Rule) Act 1996, the
Knives Act 1997, the
British Nationality (Hong Kong) Act 1997
British nationality law prescribes the conditions under which a person is recognised as being a national of the United Kingdom. The six different classes of British nationality each have varying degrees of civil and political rights, due to the ...
, the Mental Health (Discrimination) Act 2003 the
Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, the
Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004
The Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004 (c 11) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that regulates the agencies that place vulnerable workers in agricultural work, and the shellfish collecting and packing industries (s.3). It is the ...
, the
Sustainable Communities Act 2007
The Sustainable Communities Act 2007 (c 23) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Bill for this Act was a Private Member's Bill.
The Sustainable Communities Act represents the campaign success by Local Works, a UK coalition o ...
.
House of Commons procedure
In principle, private members' bills follow much the same
parliamentary stages as any other bill. In practice, the procedural barriers to passage are much greater.
Time is allocated for private members' bills on 13 Fridays a year in the
House of Commons. Five hours of time are available each day, and several private members' bills are scheduled for each session.
Unlike Government bills, debates are not timetabled and there is no guarantee that the debate will finish within the time available. MPs opposed to a private member's bill, including Government
ministers
Minister may refer to:
* Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric
** Minister (Catholic Church)
* Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department)
** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...
and
whips, will routinely attempt to
talk out the bill, stopping further progress by preventing a vote. The bill's proponent can force a vote only with the support of at least a hundred members (and a majority of those voting).
As many MPs return to their constituencies on Thursday night, this has the practical effect of blocking all private members' bills without solid support.
It is quite possible for the first bill to take up all five hours, preventing any other bill on the agenda from being debated. Any bill not debated may receive second reading without debate at the end of the session, but a single shout of "object!" will delay consideration to a future date; Government and opposition whips routinely block contentious private members' bills in this way. Another date for second reading will also be set for bills which have been talked out. This is a formality; the bill will be put to the bottom of the
order paper
The Order Paper is a daily publication in the Westminster system of government which lists the business of parliament for that day's sitting. A separate paper is issued daily for each house of the legislature.
The Order Paper provides members ...
, will likely be objected to on each future occasion and has no practical chance of success.
Even if second reading is passed, a bill is likely to need the support of the government to become law. The bill will be referred to
public bill committee, which may make amendments. The amended version of the bill will then return to the Commons. To become law, it must also successfully negotiate report stage and third reading, as well as the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
. Contentious bills are likely to run out of parliamentary time unless the government allocates some; any pending private members' bills lapse at the end of each parliamentary session.
Private members' bills may also originate in the House of Lords. To become law, these bills must be adopted by an MP and passed in the same way as a bill originated in the Commons.
See also
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Bill (proposed law)
A bill is proposed legislation under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature as well as, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an '' ...
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Private bill
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Right of initiative (legislative)
The right of (legislative) initiative is the constitutionally defined power to propose a new law (bill) in a legislature.
The right of initiative is usually given to both the government (executive) and individual legislators.
However, some syst ...
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Motion (parliamentary procedure)
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Table (parliamentary procedure)
In parliamentary procedure, the verb to table has the opposite meaning in the United States from that of the rest of the world:
*In the United States, to "table" usually means to postpone or suspend consideration of a pending motion.
*In the rest o ...
, which has a different meaning in the US compared to the other countries mentioned in this article.
References
External links
UK Parliament website: Bill ProcedureUK Parliament website: The result of the Private Members' Bill ballot for the current sessionHouse of Commons Factsheet: Private Members' Bills ProcedureHouse of Commons Factsheet: Success of Private Members' Bills
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Westminster system
Proposed laws of the United Kingdom
Parliament of India
Parliament of Canada