Text 2. How does the Bill become a Statute in Great Britain?

The principal sources of legal authority in Great Britain are Acts of Parliament, administrative law, court opinions, and Books of Authority. The idea for a new law can come from a variety of sources: 1) An election manifesto promise; 2) A government department after an election has been won; 3) The influence of pressure groups; 4) The influence of experts within their field; 5) In response to an EU directive.

In Britain there are two legislative assemblies under the Westminster System, an Upper and a Lower House. These are known as the House of Lords and the House of Commons respectively. Together they constitute the bicameral British Parliament. Legislation is introduced in the form of a "bill". Bills are the proposed laws, and can be launched in either house. There are generally two kinds of bills - public and private. Bills initiated by the government or an individual MP are public bills and have general applicability. Private bills originate from promoters outside Parliament, such as, local authorities, commercial organizations, charitable bodies and even individuals who are seeking legal privileges applicable only to them.

Hybrid Bills are very rare. The government or backbenchers introduce them. They are a mixture of private and public bills and come about if someone or some people are going to be treated differently to others.

A public bill passes through three readings in each House. The bill is first read in the house it was introduced into. In Britain the government introduces only the most uncontroversial bills into the Upper House, wanting their proposals to gain the support of the elected representatives in the Lower House.

The first reading of the bill is a mere formality. The bill is announced, printed and assigned a number. There is no debate at this stage. It is the job of the Members of Parliament to consider what problem the bill is designed to solve and how effective it could be.

The first opportunity to speak their mind comes at the second reading of the bill, where a vote on its general principles is taken after a debate. If the government is beaten on this vote then it is considered a major setback. In the Lower House, such a defeat would represent a failure to carry its own party with it. To avoid such an embarrassment whips may be used. A "whip" is an order from the government that members of the party are expected to act in a certain way when voting on a articular bill. "One line" whips indicate they may vote as they wish, whereas "two line" whips allow them to absent themselves if they cannot bring themselves to vote positively. The dreaded "three line" whip compels them to vote positively, although a large scale revolt would make the government rethink. If the bill passes this stage, it's ready for committee. These are a Joint, a Select, or in most cases, a Standing Committee. Committees are comprised of a small number of members of the house. In the Commons, the number varies between ten to fifteen people. These people should have specialized knowledge of the technical details of legislation in the area

under consideration. Clause by clause they examine the bill and can strengthen it and make concessions based on the outcome of earlier debate. On important matters such as the annual budget, the whole house will sit "in committee".

It is reprinted then as amended in a

Standing Committee after which a further debate, known as the Report Stage, may take place on the floor of the House. The government's priority is to make sure the bill emerges from committee in a form that will be ultimately passed by the house, whereas the opposition may seek to emasculate the bill or amend it radically.

Then the third reading occurs, at which point a final debate and vote take place on the bill. It may be amended further at this stage in the Lords, whereas no further amendment is permitted in the Commons.

The bill is now sent to the other house depending on the originating House where it goes through the same procedure. The Commons has the power to tell the Lords to stuff it, but things aren't so simple for the latter. They can reject most bills from the Commons initially, but their powers to stall for ever are limited in Great Britain by the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949. The bill may now pass between the two houses several times as amendments are proposed and rejected. With each amended version, the bill receives a new number. If agreement is not reached within the parliamentary session, the bill is lost. Once both houses are agreed on a final version of the bill, it becomes law.

The final step for the bill is to gain the Royal Assent. The monarch almost always acts only in accordance with constitutional convention and the advice of the Prime Minister. The last time the monarch refused to give Royal Assent was in 1707 with Queen Anne. Nowadays this step is almost