Law and Rights
The Queen delivered the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords. Details of the speech are available via the No.10 Downing Street website.
19 Bills are referred to in the Speech and these include a Crime and Courts Bill; Defamation Bill; House of Lords Reform Bill and a Justice and Security Bill. More details of the Bills may be seen at The Guardian "All the Bills and what they mean." See also "Plans for secret hearings in civil cases brought forward" and "Overhaul of libel law"
Reform of the House of Lords has been the wish of reformers for a very long time - as discussed on an earlier post on this blog - 20th May 2011. See also the earlier posts on the Justice and Security Green Paper.
The ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament is redolent with history. The three elements
(Queen: Lords and Commons) making up The Queen in Parliament are to be seen. Is this time-honoured system anachronistic? Should there be a move to a more modern form of legislature? Whatever the answer to such questions, the proposed House of Lords Reform Bill is unlikely to achieve more than some new form of structure for the House of Lords and the powers of the House will remain unchanged since the whole emphasis remains on the "primacy" of the Commons. In the present difficult economic times, many see the Reform Bill is an unnecessary distraction.
The Justices of the Supreme Court continue to attend the State Opening even though the Supreme Court is now separate from Parliament. The judges sit near to the Throne and the Woolsack. This is where the former Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (the "Law Lords") used to sit during the ceremony.
Text of the Queen's Speech
In March, in the historic Westminster Hall, Her Majesty addressed Parliament on the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee
Update 11th May - Articles from the Law Society Gazette 10th May
Justice and Security Bill faces a rough ride - Jonathan Rayner
Crime and Courts Bill to create single county court system - John Hyde
Cautious welcome for Children and Families Bill - Catherine Baksi
Employment bill to set existing changes in legislation - Jonathan Rayner - refers to the Enterprise & Regulatory Reform Bill
The Guardian - After the Queen's Speech: who will speak for liberty now? A blanket licence for electronic monitoring could slowly strangle private life.
- The Queen's Speech 8th May 2013 And The State Opening Of Parliament
In a 92 page pdf document the government has published details of the Queen's Speech 2013. The document sets out not only the speech itself but contains background details to the various Bills and policies referred to in the speech. ...
- Consultations And Bills
There are several active consultations: 1. UK Bill of Rights - The British Bill of Rights - Second consultation - responses required by 30th September 2. Justice Swift and Sure - Perhaps not strictly a consultation but the Ministry of Justice...
- House Of Lords Reform
House of Lords Reform Draft Bill The Deputy Prime Minister (The Rt. Hon Nick Clegg MP) has presented a draft House of Lords (Reform) Bill to Parliament. The Bill is to be considered in a committee which will report in early 2012. The proposal...
- The House Of Lords Bill
One of the Bills not referred to in The Queen's Speech was the House of Lords Reform Bill. This is a private member's bill introduced by Lord Steel of Aikwood. It will create a Commission to consider individuals for Life Peerages. ...
- The Queen's Speech - A Lot To Do
The State Opening of Parliament was held on Tuesday 25th May with the usual pomp and pageantry. The real business of Parliament now begins and interesting days lie ahead. The Queen's Speech contained 23 Bills (and one draft Bill) - see...
Law and Rights
Queen's Speech 9th May 2012
Updated 11th May and 12th May
The Queen delivered the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords. Details of the speech are available via the No.10 Downing Street website.
19 Bills are referred to in the Speech and these include a Crime and Courts Bill; Defamation Bill; House of Lords Reform Bill and a Justice and Security Bill. More details of the Bills may be seen at The Guardian "All the Bills and what they mean." See also "Plans for secret hearings in civil cases brought forward" and "Overhaul of libel law"
Reform of the House of Lords has been the wish of reformers for a very long time - as discussed on an earlier post on this blog - 20th May 2011. See also the earlier posts on the Justice and Security Green Paper.
The ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament is redolent with history. The three elements
(Queen: Lords and Commons) making up The Queen in Parliament are to be seen. Is this time-honoured system anachronistic? Should there be a move to a more modern form of legislature? Whatever the answer to such questions, the proposed House of Lords Reform Bill is unlikely to achieve more than some new form of structure for the House of Lords and the powers of the House will remain unchanged since the whole emphasis remains on the "primacy" of the Commons. In the present difficult economic times, many see the Reform Bill is an unnecessary distraction.
Text of the Queen's Speech
In March, in the historic Westminster Hall, Her Majesty addressed Parliament on the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee
Update 11th May - Articles from the Law Society Gazette 10th May
Justice and Security Bill faces a rough ride - Jonathan Rayner
Crime and Courts Bill to create single county court system - John Hyde
Cautious welcome for Children and Families Bill - Catherine Baksi
Employment bill to set existing changes in legislation - Jonathan Rayner - refers to the Enterprise & Regulatory Reform Bill
Update 12th May
The Guardian - After the Queen's Speech: who will speak for liberty now? A blanket licence for electronic monitoring could slowly strangle private life.
- The Queen's Speech 8th May 2013 And The State Opening Of Parliament
In a 92 page pdf document the government has published details of the Queen's Speech 2013. The document sets out not only the speech itself but contains background details to the various Bills and policies referred to in the speech. ...
- Consultations And Bills
There are several active consultations: 1. UK Bill of Rights - The British Bill of Rights - Second consultation - responses required by 30th September 2. Justice Swift and Sure - Perhaps not strictly a consultation but the Ministry of Justice...
- House Of Lords Reform
House of Lords Reform Draft Bill The Deputy Prime Minister (The Rt. Hon Nick Clegg MP) has presented a draft House of Lords (Reform) Bill to Parliament. The Bill is to be considered in a committee which will report in early 2012. The proposal...
- The House Of Lords Bill
One of the Bills not referred to in The Queen's Speech was the House of Lords Reform Bill. This is a private member's bill introduced by Lord Steel of Aikwood. It will create a Commission to consider individuals for Life Peerages. ...
- The Queen's Speech - A Lot To Do
The State Opening of Parliament was held on Tuesday 25th May with the usual pomp and pageantry. The real business of Parliament now begins and interesting days lie ahead. The Queen's Speech contained 23 Bills (and one draft Bill) - see...