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Private Members' Ballot Bills First Reading: 24 June 2015

24 June 2015

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The Private Members' Ballot Bills were given their first reading in the House of Commons on Wednesday 24 June 2015.

The first reading stage of a Bill is formal, with no debate. After first reading the Bills will then be considered on the 13 Fridays that the House is scheduled to sit in the 2015-16 session.

The ballot for Private Members' Bills for this session took place on Thursday 4 June 2015.

The complete text of Private Members' Bills is often not published until close to the second reading debate. For the presentation of the bill only the short and long titles are needed. The publication of the bill is arranged by the sponsoring MP.

Private Members' Ballot Bills 2015 -16 in ballot order

1. Assisted Dying (No.2) - Rob Marris

Bill to enable competent adults who are terminally ill to choose to be provided with medically supervised assistance to end their own life; and for connected purposes.

2. Access to Medical Treatments (Innovation) -  Chris Heaton-Harris

Bill to make provision for access to innovative medical treatments; and for connected purposes.

3. Defence Expenditure (NATO Target) - Sir Gerald Howarth

Bill to make provision about the meeting by the UK of the NATO target for defence expenditure in each member state to constitute not less than 2 per cent of gross domestic product; to make provision for verification that NATO’s criteria for defence expenditure are met in calculating the UK’s performance against this target; and for connected purposes.

4. Hospital Car Parking Charges (Exemption for Carers) - Julie Cooper

Bill to make provision for exempting carers from hospital car parking charges; and for connected purposes.

5. NHS (Charitable Trusts Etc) - Wendy Morton

Bill to make provision for, and in connection with, the removal of the Secretary of State’s powers under the National Health Service Act 2006 to appoint trustees; to make provision transferring to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity the right to a royalty conferred by Schedule 6 to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988; and for connected purposes.

6. Compulsory Emergency First Aid Education (State-funded Secondary Schools) - Teresa Pearce

Bill to require the provision of Emergency First Aid (EFA) education by all state-funded secondary schools; to require that EFA education include cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillator awareness; to provide for initial and continuing teacher education and guidance on best practice for delivering and inspecting EFA education; and for connected purposes.

7. Riot Compensation - Mike Wood

Bill to repeal the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 and make provision about types of claims, procedures, decision-making and limits on awards payable in relation to a new compensation scheme for property damaged, destroyed or stolen in the course of riots.

8. Off-patent Drugs - Nick Thomas-Symonds

Bill to require the Secretary of State to seek licences for off-patent drugs in new indications; to require the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to conduct technology appraisals for off-patent drugs in new indications; and for connected purposes.

9. Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) - Ms Karen Buck

Bill to amend the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 to require that residential rented accommodation is provided and maintained in a state of fitness for human habitation; and for connected purposes.

10. Pavement Parking (Protection of Vulnerable Pedestrians) - Simon Hoare

Bill to make powers available to highway authorities to make further provision for the safety, convenience and free movement on pavements of disabled people, older people, people accompanying young children and other vulnerable pedestrians; to clarify, strengthen and simplify the law relating to parking on pavements in England and Wales; and for connected purposes.

11. Local Government Finance (Tenure Information) - Dame Angela Watkinson

Bill to amend the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to make provision for collecting information about tenure and the details of private landlords; and for connected purposes.

12. On-demand Audiovisual Services (Accessibility for People with Disabilities affecting Hearing or Sight or both) - Lilian Greenwood

Bill to require the appropriate regulatory authority of on-demand audiovisual programme services to draw up a Code relating to the provision of subtitles, signing and audio-description for persons with disabilities affecting their hearing or their sight or both; to require the appropriate regulatory authority to consult before issuing any such Code; to make provision for minimum requirements to be included in the Code; to require that on-demand programme services providers observe the requirements of the Code; to provide for regular consultation about and review of the minimum requirements; and for connected purposes.

13. Highways (Improvement, Traffic Regulation and Traffic Management) - Sir William Cash

Bill to make provision for the prioritisation of maintenance of unclassified roads; the management of heavy commercial vehicle traffic; the regulation of the use of certain roads by such vehicles; and for connected purposes.

14. Criminal Cases Review Commission (Information) - William Wragg

Bill to extend the Criminal Cases Review Commission’s powers to obtain information.

15. Higher Education (Information) - Heidi Allen

Bill to require information to be made available to prospective undergraduate students about what is provided to students for the tuition fees charged, how tuition fee resources are expended and what is expected of students; to establish transparency in how tuition fees are spent; and for connected purposes.

16. Representation of the People (Young Persons’ Enfranchisement and Education) - Vicky Foxcroft

Bill to reduce the voting age to 16 in general elections, elections to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the European Parliament, local government elections and referendums; to make provision about young people's education in citizenship and the constitution; and for connected purposes.

17. Crown Tenancies - Mark Pawsey

Bill to provide that Crown tenancies may be assured tenancies for the purposes of the Housing Act 1988, subject to certain exceptions; to modify the assured tenancies regime in relation to certain Crown tenancies; and for connected purposes.

18. Mental Health (Independent Advocacy) (England) - Mr Geoffrey Cox

Bill to amend the Mental Health Act 1983 to make further provision for powers and responsibilities of independent mental health advocates for qualifying patients in England; and for connected purposes.

19. Health and Safety Executive (Powers) - James Cleverly

Bill to confer further powers on the Health and Safety Executive.

20. Assessment of Government Policies (Impact on Families) - Caroline Ansell

Bill to require ministers to carry out an assessment of the impact of government policies on families by giving statutory effect to the family test; to place a duty on the Secretary of State to make a report on the costs and benefits of requiring local authorities to carry out equivalent tests on their policies; to require the Secretary of State to establish, and make an annual report on, indicators of and targets for the government’s performance in promoting family stability; and for connected purposes. 

What happens next?

Following first reading, the sponsoring MP nominates the date for the next stage, second reading, to take place. Second reading is the first opportunity for MPs to debate the main principles of the Bill.

After first reading the Bills will then be considered on sitting Fridays. Time for debating Private Members' Bills is limited to 13 Fridays in each session of Parliament.

The following Fridays have been set for discussion of Private Members’ Bills in 2015-16:

11 September 2015
16 October 2015
23 October 2015
30 October 2015
6 November 2015
20 November 2015
4 December 2015
22 January 2016
29 January 2016
5 February 2016
26 February 2016
4 March 2016
11 March 2016

Related information

What are Private Members' Bills?

Private Members' Bills are Public Bills introduced by MPs and Lords who are not government ministers. As with other Public Bills their purpose is to change the law as it applies to the general population. A minority of Private Members' Bills become law.

There are three ways in which a Member can table a Private Members' Bill but Ballot Bills have the best chance of becoming law, as they get priority for the limited amount of debating time available.

The names of Members applying for a Bill are drawn in a ballot held at the beginning of the parliamentary year. Normally, the first seven ballot Bills get a day's debate.

The Private Members' Bills Ballot for the 2015-16 session tool place on Thursday 4 June 2015.

Watching a debate from the public gallery

UK residents and overseas visitors can watch proceedings in the House of Commons by visiting the public gallery.

This article was produced by the Commons Digital Outreach Team. Follow the @HouseofCommons on Twitter for updates on the UK House of Commons Chamber.

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