Sources of Law: Legislation

1. Issued by the minister in charge of the matter
2. It is a consultative document put forward with proposals for change. These consultations are important as it allows consideration time and time to avoid unwanted reactions to incidents resulting from unworkable legislation.
   1. The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991
3. Interested parties are invited to comment and make necessary changes so that a full consideration of the matter is made

1. This is then published by the government as a firm proposal for a new law.

1. There are three types of Bill
   1. Private Members Bills
      1. Introduced by MP's rather than ministers
      2. 20 MP's are selected for a ballot whereby they can present their bill in the HOC.
      3. Only the first 6 or 7 in the ballot have a chance at introducing their chosen Bill
      4. Very few PMB become acts
         1. The Abortion Act 1967
         2. The Marriage Act 1994
      5. 10-minute rule
         1. Any MP gets 10 minutes to introduce a bill bu supporting the idea of the new legislation. It is rarely successful. Members of the HOL can also introduce Bills.
            1. The Bail (Amendment) Act 1993
   2. Private Bills
      1. Intended to affect one particular area.organisation
         1. The University College London Act 1996
            1. It was passed to join two schools of medicine with the UCL
      2. Always begin in the HOL.
   3. Public Bills
      1. Intended to affect the public as a whole. It is the come common Government Bill
         1. Disability Discrimination Act 1995
      2. Introduced by the relevant minister and are generally successful as Government will have a majority vote in Parliament - they vote in parties, not individually.

Annotations:

• 1) 

1. Informs MP's and the public about the proposed legislation
2. The name and main aims of the bill are read out
3. A vote takes place to decide if it should continue to the next stage

Annotations:

• 2) 

1. Explains the purpose of the Bill
2. This is the main debate stage
3. The purposes behind the bill are debated, but the details aren't focused upon.
4. A majority vote proceeds the Bill to the next stage.

Annotations:

• 3)

1. Looks at the details of each clause of the Bill
2. Carried out by between 16 and 50 MPs = a standing committee.
3. Members are chosen because of their special interest in the subject matter.
4. Easier to debate and is more informal.

Annotations:

• 4) 

1. Further consideration and changes by the HOC
2. If amendments have been suggested in the Committee stage, then the report stage debates on them.
3. If no amendments, then no report stage and it goes on to the next stage.

Annotations:

• 5) 

1. Overall examination of the Bill
2. Unlikely the bill will fail at this stage
3. A further debate will occur if at least 6 MPs request it.

Annotations:

• 6)

1. If Bill started in the HOC, it goes to the HOL and experiences a similar procedure
2. If amendments are found, then the Bill goes back to the HOC to be considered
3. HOL power is limited by the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949
   1. A bill can become law if the HOL reject it provided that the bill was re-introduced into the HOC and passes through all the stages again.

Annotations:

• 7)

1. The monarch give their approval for the Bill to become an Act
2. The Royal Assent Act 1961 means that the monarch doesn't see the Bills to what she is assenting to

Annotations:

• 8)

1. Comes into force the midnight of that day unless another day has been chosen
2. Acts aren't always implemented immediately
   1. Disability Discrimination Act 1995
   2. Or implemented in stages
      1. Criminal Justice Act 2003

1. Language obscure and complex
2. Acts over-elaborated as they try to provide for every situation
3. The internal structure of Acts are illogical as it's difficult to find relevant sections
4. Connections between Acts on a given topic may be difficult to find
5. Frequent amendment to one part of an Act means that it's difficult to find out what the law actually is.
6. Difficult to know whether the Act has been implemented or which parts are in force.