Bill-by-bill summary: Queen's Speech at-a-glance
- 7 hours ago
- UK Politics
PA
The Queen has announced the government's legislation for the year ahead, at the state opening of Parliament. Here is a bill-by-bill guide to what is in the 2016 Queen's Speech.
Digital Economy Bill (UK-wide)
PA- Every UK household will have legal right to a fast broadband connection
- Minimum speed of 10Mbps to be guaranteed through Broadband Universal Service Obligation
- Properties in the "remotest areas" may have to contribute to cost of installation
- New code to cut the cost of building mobile phone masts and broadband cables
- Right to automatic compensation when broadband service goes down
- Companies must get consent before sending promotional spam emails, with fines for transgressors
- All websites containing pornographic images to require age verification for access
Modern Transport Bill
PA- Measures to encourage investment in driverless cars, electric cars, commercial space planes and drones (Great Britain only)
- Ensuring insurance is available to users of driverless cars (Great Britain only)
- Updating Air Travel Organiser's Licence (Atol), the UK's financial protection scheme for holidays (UK-wide)
Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill (England and Wales)
PA- Pre-commencement planning conditions to be streamlined to speed up housing developments
- Local communities to have more say over neighbourhood planning
- Changes to make compulsory planning orders "clearer, fairer and faster"
- A new statutory framework for paying compensation, based on market value of land
- National Infrastructure Commission to be put on statutory footing
- Consultation on future of Land Registry with a view to privatisation
Local Growth and Jobs Bill (England only)
- Framework to be put in place to enable local authorities to retain 100% of business rates levied
- New powers to be devolved to local authorities to be set out in law
- Combined authority mayors to have scope to levy business rate supplement to fund infrastructure projects
Better Markets Bill (UK-wide)
PA- Measures to make it easier for customers to switch banks and energy providers
- Competition and Market Authority recommendations for energy competition to be implemented
- Speeding up competition investigations and giving regulators more powers
Bus Services Bill (England only)
- Combined local authorities with elected mayors to have power to franchise local services
- Operators will be required to share route, fare and schedule data with app developers
- Councils to set standards for ticketing, branding and frequency of services
- Clearer and simpler franchising arrangements
NHS Overseas Visitors Charging Bill
SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY- Overseas migrants and visitors will be charged for NHS services they are not entitled to
- Tighter residency rules mean fewer visitors from the European Economic Area will be able to access free health care
- "Full cost" of treating overseas patients to be recovered and ploughed back into NHS
- Not yet clear whether this applies to entire UK
Pensions Bill
- Better protection for people paying into multi-employer pension schemes known as Master Trusts (Great Britain only)
- Master Trusts to have to meet new criteria and be subject to closer supervision (Great Britain only)
- Capping early exit fees charged by trust-based occupational pension schemes (Great Britain only)
- Pension Advisory Service, Pension Wise and Money Advice Service to be merged into single body (UK-wide)
- New financial advice body to be created (UK-wide)
Children and Social Work Bill (England only)
- Adoption procedures to be speeded up
- Councils required to tell children leaving care what services they are entitled to
- All care leavers to have right to personal adviser to the age of 25
- A new social work regulator to focus on training and professional standards
- A duty on councils and schools to promote educational achievement for adopted children
Education for All Bill (Mainly England only)
PA- Powers to convert under-performing schools in "unviable" local authorities to academies
- Goal of making every school an academy but no compulsion to do so
- Head teachers, not councils, to be responsible for school improvement
- A new national funding formula for schools
- Schools to be responsible for assisting excluded pupils
Higher Education and Research Bill (Mainly England only)
PA- Removing barriers for new universities to be set up and for existing providers to get university status
- New Teaching Excellence Framework to focus on raising standards
- Universities to be required to publish detailed admissions data on ethnicity, gender and socio-economic background
Prison and Courts Reform Bill (England and Wales)
PA- New "reform" prisons to be opened, with emphasis on training, rehabilitation and education
- Governors of new prisons to have freedom to agree service contracts and establish their own boards
- More statistics on post-release offending and employment rates to be published
- Courts and tribunals to be modernised, with greater use of technology to reduce delays
National Citizen Service Bill (Discussions with devolved administrations)
- New statutory framework to deliver the National Citizen Service
- All state secondary schools, academies, private schools and councils required to promote NCS
Lifetime Savings Bill (UK-wide)
- Help to Save scheme announced in Budget to help those on low incomes build up "rainy day fund"
- Those in work but getting certain benefits who put aside £50 a month will see it matched by state
- New Lifetime ISA for under-40s to be introduced, offering £1,000 tax-free payment each year for those saving £4,000
Small Charitable Donations Bill (UK-wide)
- Gift Aid Small Donations scheme to be changed following a public consultation
- Aim to increase benefits of scheme for new and smaller charities, including amateur sports clubs
- Clarify rules concerning how charities connected with community buildings can benefit
Counter-Extremism and Safeguarding Bill (England and Wales)
- A new civil order regime to be introduced to restrict extremist activity
- New powers of intervention to tackle radicalisation of children in "unregulated education settings"
- Government to step in where councils fail to tackle extremism, subject to consultation
- Ofcom to have power to regulate internet-streamed material from outside EU
Criminal Finances Bill (UK-wide)
PA- New criminal offence making companies liable for stopping their staff facilitating tax evasion
- Changes to laws on the proceeds of crime, to make it easier for the police and courts to recover criminal assets
- The Suspicious Activity Reports regime to be refocused, with emphasis on tackling systemic money laundering
Cultural Property Bill (UK-wide)
- The UK to ratify the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of armed conflict
- Dealing in cultural property illegally exported from occupied territory to be made criminal offence
- Property protected under the convention and its protocols to be identified by new Blue Shield
Wales Bill (Wales only)
PA- Clarification of the division of powers reserved to UK Parliament and those devolved to National Assembly of Wales
- Devolving powers over energy, transport and elections, including voting age, to Welsh Assembly
- Repeal of requirement for referendum prior to devolution of income tax powers
- Draft bill was published in October 2015
Intellectual Property Bill (UK-wide)
- Change the law relating to unjustified threats of legal action in cases involving patents, trade marks and design rights
- Make it easier for companies to settle intellectual property disputes out of court
- Exempting lawyers and other professional advisers from liability for threatening legal action in certain cases
- Subject to consultation and report by the Law Commission
Draft Law of Property Bill
- Response to Law Commission report on simplifying land ownership
Bills carried over from last session of Parliament
HS2High Speed Rail Bill
- Give government the legal powers to build high-speed rail network between London and the West Midlands
Investigatory Powers Bill
- Overhaul of laws governing how the state gathers and retains private communications or other forms of data to combat crime
- Broadband and mobile phone providers will be compelled to hold a year's worth of communications data
- Creation of new Investigatory Powers Commissioner
Policing and Crime Bill
- Closer collaboration between the emergency rescue services
- Overhaul of the police complaints and disciplinary systems
- A ban on under-18s being held in police cells as a "place of safety"
Other measures
Bill of Rights (Subject to consultation)
- Plans for a British bill of rights to replace the Human Rights Act will be published in "due course" and subject to consultation
- Proposals for a new framework of human rights, based on those set out in the European Convention on Human Rights
- Bill of rights also to take into account UK's "common law tradition"
Soft Drinks Industry Levy (UK-wide)
- New levy on producers of drinks with added sugar content to come into force in April 2018
- Measure to be included in 2017 Finance Bill
- Money raised will be used to increase funding for school sports, after-school activities and breakfast clubs
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