WHAT'S IN IT?
Queen’s Speech at a glance – all the legislation Theresa May’s government will try to pass in the next two years
TODAY's Queen's Speech mainly focused on Brexit and security bills after the PM lost her majority in the election.
It will include bills on tackling terrorism, pushing through legislation on our EU exit, and measures to "make the country fairer".
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There will be a total of 27 bills and draft bills this year - which is fairly typical.
Tony Blair's administration in 2005 saw 45, there were just 11 in the Tory-Lib Dem coalition in 2014, and David Cameron offered 24 in 2016.
However, this will be for the next two years, rather than one - which means this is a very slimmed down affair.
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Eight of the bills are specifically focusing on delivering Brexit, and many of the rest are relatively minor reforms.
Here's a short summary of what's in this year's speech.
Brexit
- Great Repeal Bill: to ensure a smooth and orderly transition from the European Union by replicating Brussels law into domestic law, maximising certainty for people and businesses.
- Customs Bill: to ensure the UK has a standalone UK customs regime on leaving the EU, including the flexibility to accommodate future trade agreements.
- Trade Bill: to put in place a legal framework to allow Britain to strike free trade deals with countries around the world while ensuring domestic businesses are protected from unfair trading practices.
- Immigration Bill: to allow the UK to end the free movement of EU citizens into the UK but still allow the country to attract "the brightest and the best". EU nationals and family members will be "subject to relevant UK law" after Brexit.
- Fisheries Bill: to enable the UK to "exercise responsibility" for access to fisheries and management of its waters.
- Agriculture Bill: to deliver on the Tory manifesto pledge to provide stability to farmers as the UK leaves the EU, protect the natural environment.
- Nuclear Safeguards Bill: to give the Office for Nuclear Regulation powers to take on the role and responsibilities to meet international safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation obligations as the UK leaves the EU and Euratom.
- International Sanctions Bill: to establish a sovereign UK framework to impose international sanctions on a multilateral or unilateral basis, returning decision-making on non-UN sanctions to Britain and ensuring compliance with international law
What is the Queen's Speech?
THE Queen’s Speech is a flagship event that sets out the Government’s agenda for the next two years.
- Where? The Queen’s Speech takes place at the State Opening of Parliament.
- Who? Written by the PM and his or her colleagues, it outlines the Government’s legislative agenda for the coming year.
The event sees the Queen address the House of Lords before the Commons are invited into the chamber by Black Rod, the Monarch’s envoy in Parliament, to hear the speech. MPs then debate the speech back in the House of Commons. - What? It gives the best marker as to what policies will be pursued most vigorously and what plans will be put on the backburner.
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Economy
- Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill: to ensure Britain continues to be at the forefront of developing new technology in electric and automated vehicles, including measures to help improve air quality and force motorway services and petrol stations to provide charging points for electric and hydrogen vehicles.
- Space Industry Bill: create new powers to license a wide range of new commercial space flights including vertically-launched rockets, space planes, satellites, space ports and other technology.
- High Speed 2 Phase 2A Bill: to provide the powers to build and operate the next stage of the HS2 high-speed rail line between Birmingham and Crewe. The £55.7billion railway will be extended - and plans to open it by 2027. Phase 2b, from Crewe to Manchester and from the West Midlands to Leeds, South Yorkshire and the East Midlands, is due to begin operations in 2033.
- Smart Meter Bill: to extend by five years powers to make changes to smart meter regulations. A roll-out to all homes with the new tech will be offered by 2020
- National Insurance Contributions Bill: to legislate for National Insurance contributions (NICs) changes announced in the 2016 Budget and 2016 Autumn Statement.
Making a fairer country
- Travel Protection Bill: to update the financial protection scheme for holidays including the Air Travel Organisers' Licence (Atol) scheme. This will give holiday makers extra protection when heading away - and will guarantee that more people get a refund or can travel home if a company goes bust.
- Draft Tenants' Fees Bill: to ban landlords and agents charging "letting fees" or any payments as a condition of tenancy other than rent, a capped refundable security deposit at no more than one month's rent, a capped refundable holding deposit at no more than one week's rent and tenant default fees. These have been brought forward - as letting fees for tenants have jumped massively in the last five years.
- Draft Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill: to establish a Domestic Violence and Abuse Commissioner and introduce new protection and sentencing powers. If domestic abusers affect children, their sentences could be tougher.
- Civil Liability Bill: to crack down on fraudulent whiplash claims and reduce motor insurance premiums by about £35 a year. Legislation will tackle the rampant compensation culture, and introduce a fixed tariff on any payouts.
- Courts Bill: to reform English and Welsh courts to make them more efficient and accessible, including an end to the direct cross-examinations of domestic violence victims by their alleged perpetrators in family courts and allowing more victims to participate in trials without having to meet their alleged assailant face to face. Ministers will press ahead with plans for online convictions.
- Financial Guidance and Claims Bill: to combine three financial advice bodies into one statutory body, accountable to Parliament, to provide debt advice, money guidance and pension guidance.
- Goods Mortgage Bill: to implement recommendations from the Law Commission to update Victorian-era law on logbook loans.
Making a safer and more united country
- Armed Forces Bill: to provide service personnel with "modern, flexible" opportunities to serve their country in ways that "better suit their lifestyle aspirations and circumstances", including forms of part-time service.
- Data Protection Bill: to ensure the UK has a 21st century data protection regime, including strengthening rights and empowering individuals to have more control over their data, including a right to be forgotten to grant powers to delete information held about them at the age of 18. A new Digital Charter to make the UK the "safest place to be online" was also announced.
- Draft Patient Safety Bill: to improve patient safety in the NHS and instil greater public confidence in the provision of healthcare services in England, including establishing the Health Service Safety Investigation Body in law to conduct independent and impartial investigations.
Other
- The legislative programme will also include three Finance Bills to implement Budget decisions, a technical Bill to ratify several "minor EU agreements" and further Bills to affect the UK's exit from the bloc.
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