Private Members’ Bills presented to Parliament

Twenty lucky MPs were drawn in a Private Members’ Bills ballot which took place in last month, and these MPs have spent the past few weeks deciding on which topic they wish to introduce legislation. 

The twenty Members and their chosen bills are:  

• Mark Jenkinson - Education (Careers Guidance in Schools) - Bill to extend the duty to provide careers guidance in schools.
• Barry Gardiner - Employment and Trade Union Rights (Dismissal and Re-engagement) - Bill to amend the law relating to workplace information and consultation, employment protection and trade union rights to provide safeguards for workers against dismissal and re-engagement on inferior terms and conditions; and for connected purposes.
• Carolyn Harris - Menopause (Support and Services) - Bill to make provision about menopause support and services; to exempt hormone replacement therapy from National Health Service prescription charges; and for connected purposes.
• Dr Liam Fox - Down Syndrome - Bill to make provision about meeting the needs of persons with Down syndrome; to place a duty on local authorities to assess the likely social care needs of persons with Down syndrome and plan provision accordingly; and for connected purposes.
• Sajid Javid - Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) - Bill to make provision about the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership; and for connected purposes.
• Kevin Brennan - Copyright (Rights and Remuneration of Musicians, Etc.) - Bill to make provision about the rights and remuneration of musicians and other rights holders; and for connected purposes.
• Jeff Smith - Medical Cannabis (Access) - Bill to make provision about access to cannabis for medical reasons; and for connected purposes.
• Colum Eastwood - Climate Change - Bill to place a duty on the government to declare a climate emergency; to amend the Climate Change Act 2008 to bring forward the date by which the United Kingdom is required to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions; to place a duty on the Government to create and implement a strategy to achieve objectives related to climate change, including for the creation of environmentally-friendly jobs; to require the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on proposals for increased taxation of large companies to generate revenue to be spent to further those objectives; and for connected purposes.
• Peter Gibson - Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Safeguarding and Road Safety) - Bill to make provision about licensing in relation to taxis and private hire vehicles for purposes relating to the safeguarding of passengers and road safety; and for connected purposes.
• Dr Ben Spencer - Planning (Enforcement) - A Bill to create offences relating to repeat breaches of planning controls; to make provision about penalties for planning offences; to establish a national register of persons who have committed planning offences or breached planning controls and make associated provision about planning applications; and for connected purposes.
• Mel Stride - Cultural Objects (Protection from Seizure) - Bill to extend the protection from seizure or forfeiture given to cultural objects.
• Margaret Ferrier - Pension Schemes (Conversion of Guaranteed Minimum Pensions) - Bill to make provision about the amendment of pension schemes so as to provide for the conversion of rights to a guaranteed minimum pension.
• Matt Rodda - Childcare - Bill to enable provision to be made for appeals relating to free childcare for young children of working parents to be settled by agreement; to make further provision designed to increase efficiency in the administration of free childcare schemes; to make provision about the promotion of the availability of free childcare, including to disadvantaged groups; and for connected purposes.
• Jane Stevenson - Glue Traps (Offences) - Bill to make certain uses of glue traps an offence; and for connected purposes.
• Chris Bryant - Acquired Brain Injury - Bill to make provision about meeting the needs of adults and children with an acquired brain injury; and for connected purposes.  
• Sir Paul Beresford - Local Government (Disqualification) - Bill to make provision about the grounds on which a person is disqualified from being elected to, or holding, certain positions in local government in England.
• Jeremy Wright - Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) - Bill to make provision relating to the carrying of disabled persons by taxis and private hire vehicles.
• Richard Fuller - Hare Coursing - Bill to make provision about hare coursing offences; to increase penalties for such offences; and for connected purposes.
• Andrew Rosindell - Animals (Penalty Notices) - Bill to make provision for and in connection with the giving of penalty notices for certain offences in relation to animals and animal products.
• Rosie Cooper - British Sign Language - A Bill to declare British Sign Language (BSL) an official language of the United Kingdom; to provide for a British Sign Language Council to promote and advise on the use of BSL; to establish principles for the use of BSL in public services; to require public bodies to have regard to those principles and to guidance issued by the Council; and for connected purposes.

A full list of the presented Private Members’ Bills are also available in today’s Order Paper. It is up to the individual Members to decide on their bill’s topic. 

13 Fridays in each parliamentary session are allocated to debating these bills, although they will need to go through all legislative stages in both Houses of Parliament before they can become law (or an ‘Act’). You can find out more about bill stages on our website here.  

The Government announced a schedule of sitting Fridays earlier this week, with the first Private Members’ Bill Friday now expected to take place on 10 September.  

Priority in debating time is given to those MPs who have appeared near the top of the ballot, although all twenty bills will formally appear on the House of Commons order paper. 

Private Members’ Bills are Public Bills introduced by MPs who are not government Ministers. The successful MPs from this year’s ballot will now have their chance to make their mark on the law in the current session. 

Find out more about the Private Members Bill Ballot that took place last month.