Timetabling of business in the House of Commons

The Parliament & Government programme has submitted evidence to the Procedure Committee inquiry on the timetabling of business in the House of Commons. We argue that there is a pressing need to reform timetabling and the use of programme motions to rebalance scrutiny in favour of Parliament. Our evidence recommends that:

• A Business Committee should be established to deal with aspects of parliamentary business, including elements of the legislative process such as the decision to conduct pre-legislative scrutiny.
• The Business Committee should be designed to meet the following principles: greater certainty to the parliamentary timetable; more involvement between the main political parties in the management of business; greater discussion between all interested parties in the Commons about the shape and timing of the legislative programme; and greater transparency in the overall process.

• Greater flexibility should be introduced to the programming of public bill committees (PBCs), including an ‘injury time’ provision to allow for the committee to return to clauses on which debate was cut short.
• Between second reading and the commencement of a PBC time should be guaranteed for the committee to meet in private to consider the witnesses they wish to call, and the decision should be solely in the hands of the committee, not the whips.
• During PBC sittings where multiple witnesses are scheduled, it should be left to the discretion of the chair as to the management of time.
• Both government and opposition members of the PBC need sufficient time to examine and reflect on the evidence presented, and to draft appropriate amendments to the bill. There should be the expectation of one sitting week at the very least between the two stages of the PBC to allow this to happen.
• Where a bill has been heavily amended – in PBC or especially by the government at report stage – a full third reading should take place. The PBC should make a recommendation at the end of its sitting as to the necessity for a full third reading.
• A mechanism should be devised to allow a number of well-supported private members’ bills to enjoy the advantages of timetabling and therefore the chance to pass all stages, if both Houses consent.

The written evidence can be downloaded in full here.

The issues around the establishment of a Business Committee are also going to be examined by the recently formed Reform of the House of Commons Committee.