The following motions will be required to give effect to the Committee’s recommendations:
A. The Backbench Business Committee to determine up to four Bills to have priority on the first four sitting Fridays of each session, and a ballot be held to determine Members to bring forward additional bills, up to the total number of bills to be allocated priority in that session. (Paragraph 14)
That the following change to Standing Orders be made:
In Standing Order No. 152J (Backbench Business Committee), in line 43, add:
“(9) The Committee shall, not later than the second Wednesday on which the House shall sit in each session, report its determination of no more than four bills sponsored by Members who are not Ministers of the Crown which shall receive priority consideration by the House should they be presented on the fifth Wednesday on which the House shall sit in that session pursuant to Standing Order No. 14(10);”
In Standing Order No. 14 (Arrangement of public business):
(a) in line 89, at end insert–
“(9A) The Backbench Business Committee shall publish its determination of bills for priority consideration under Standing Order No. 152J(9) not later than the second Wednesday on which the House shall sit in each session, or may report that it has made no determination; publication of the determination shall be taken as notice of presentation of each bill listed in the determination by the sponsoring Member; each such bill shall be presented by the Member named in the determination, or by another Member named by that Member in writing to the Clerks at the Table, on the fifth Wednesday on which the House shall sit during the session; and the bills shall be presented in the order specified by the Committee, and before those bills specified in paragraph 10 of this Order.”
B. That the Chair and Members of the Backbench Business Committee should continue in post following prorogation until the date of the election and appointment of the Chair and Members in the new session. (Paragraph 17)
That the following changes to Standing Orders be made:
Standing Order No. 152J (Backbench Business Committee) shall be amended as follows:
After paragraph (2) insert the following new paragraph:
“(2A) Unless the House otherwise orders, each Member nominated to the Backbench Business Committee shall continue to be a member of the Committee until the date of election of a chair of the Committee in the subsequent session.”
In paragraph (3), leave out ‘for the remainder of the session in which that person is elected as chair’ and insert ‘except when a dissolution intervenes until the date of election of a chair in the subsequent session,’
C. The House should explicitly approve the use of Standing Order No. 47 (Time limits on speeches) by the Chair on days where private Members’ bills have precedence. (Paragraph 23)
That in the opinion of this House the Speaker should be free to apply the provisions of Standing Order No. 47 (Time limits on speeches) in debates on days on which backbench bills have precedence.
D. A guaranteed vote on Second Reading on the bill which is first to be debated on each of the first seven Fridays on which private Members’ bills have precedence. (Paragraph 25)
That the following change to Standing Orders be made:
In Standing Order No. 11 (Friday sittings), in line 31, at end insert—
“(5A) Where the second reading of a bill stands as the first order of the day on a Friday, the Speaker shall put the question that the bill be now read a second time (and on any amendment to that question that has been selected) at the moment of interruption if it has not previously been disposed of.)”
E. The Speaker to exercise discretion over the number of Members to be drawn in the ballot. (Paragraph 28)
That in the opinion of this House the Speaker has discretion to vary the number of Members to be drawn in the ballot specified in paragraph 10 of Standing Order No. 14 (Arrangement of public business), having regard to the relevant recommendations of the Procedure Committee in its Second Report of Session 2016–17, HC 701.
F. Standing Orders to be amended so that a private Member may present only a single bill on any one day. (Paragraph 30)
That the following change to Standing Orders be made:
In Standing Order No. 57 (Presentation and first reading), in line 2, at end insert:–
“(1A) Such notice shall be given in the Public Bill Office by the Member in person or by another Member on his or her behalf, but on any one day not more than one notice shall be accepted from any one Member.
(1B) Paragraph (1A) of this order shall not apply to notices given by a Minister of the Crown.”
G. The term ‘private Members’ bills’ to be replaced with ‘backbench bills’. (Paragraph 31)
That the following changes to Standing Orders be made:
In the following places, leave out “private Member’s” or, as the case may be, “private Members’” and insert “backbench”:
Standing Order No. 12 (House not to sit on certain Fridays), lines 2–3
Standing Order No. 14 (Arrangement of public business), lines 68–9, 79, 82–83, 90, 108, 113, 118
Standing Order No. 19 (New writs), line 4
Standing Order No. 59 (Law Commission bills), line 3
Standing Order No. 84A (Public bill committees), lines 26 and 27–8
Standing Order No. 90 (Second reading committees), lines 13, 14 and 22
Standing Order No. 97 (Scottish Grand Committee (bills in relation to their principle)), lines 16, 41, 2 and 53
Standing Order No. 113 (Northern Ireland Grand Committee (bills in relation to their principle)), lines 3 and 35;
In Standing Order No. 14 (Arrangement of public business), leave out “private Member” and insert “Member, other than a Minister of the Crown”;
In Standing Order No. 84A (Public bill committees), line 31, leave out “private Member in charge of a” and insert “Member in charge of a backbench”.
H. That the deadline for publishing a bill be brought forward to the Wednesday of the week prior to the day of second reading. (Paragraph 34)
That the following change to Standing Orders be made:
In Standing Order No. 14 (Arrangement of public business), leave out paragraph 13 and add the following paragraphs:
“(13) An order appointing a day for the second reading of a private Member’s bill shall lapse at the rising of the House on the Wednesday of the week prior to the day so appointed if at that time the bill has not been published and delivered to the Vote Office, and the House shall make no further order appointing a day for the second reading of the bill until it has been published;
Provided that if the House is not sitting on that Wednesday, the order appointing a day for second reading of the bill shall lapse as soon as the House meets again if the bill had not been published and delivered to the Vote Office on the preceding Friday.”
I. That the expectation be removed that a bill will be immediately brought in if leave is granted after a motion is passed under the ten minute rule. (Paragraph 34)
That any Member who has received the leave of the House to bring in a bill under Standing Order No. 23 (Motions for leave to bring in bills and nomination of select committees at commencement of public business) shall resume his or her seat after leave has been granted, and may present the bill on a future day.
J. After the last sitting Friday of a session, any ten minute rule bill introduced should be ordered to lie upon the Table, and should not be printed. (Paragraph 34)
That any bill given leave to be introduced under Standing Order No. 23 (Motions for leave to bring in bills and nomination of select committees at commencement of public business) shall, if presented on a day after the last Friday on which backbench bills have precedence, be ordered to lie upon the Table, and shall not be printed.
K. Future Business should list private Members’ bills only when they have been set down for a day on which private Members’ bills have precedence. (Paragraph 34)
That notice of further proceedings on any backbench bill should be published only if the day in respect of which notice has been given is a day on which the House has ordered that backbench bills should have precedence.
© Parliamentary copyright 2015
14 October 2016