This House of Lords Library Briefing has been published ahead of day 1 of the Lords debate on the December 2019 Queen's Speech, covering the following subjects: foreign affairs, defence, international development, trade, climate change and the environment.
Queen's Speech January 2020: Debate in the House of Lords Day 1 (302KB PDF)
This briefing is one of three prepared ahead of the three days of debate in the House of Lords on the Queen’s Speech, scheduled to take place between 7 and 9 January 2020. The briefings detail the legislative and policy announcements made by the Government, in the Queen’s Speech and in the associated documents, and provide links to further reading.
This briefing looks at foreign affairs, leaving the European Union, defence, international development, trade, energy, environment and agriculture. This includes information on the legislation being introduced to facilitate the UK’s exit from the European Union, such as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill, and announcements about the UK’s future relationship with the EU. The briefing also lists other expected Brexit-related legislation, with each of these covered in further detail under the relevant subject heading; for example, the proposed Immigration Bill is covered in the Library’s briefing for day two of the Queen’s Speech debates, under the home affairs heading.
This briefing also details the following legislation:
In addition, it covers policy announcements regarding climate change and the Integrated Security, Defence and Foreign Policy Review.
Queen's Speech January 2020: Debate in the House of Lords Day 1 (302KB PDF)
The Nature’s Rights Bill [HL] is a private member’s bill sponsored by Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party). The bill would recognise nature as a legal subject, granting it specific rights for protection and restoration. The bill would set out a legal framework for how this would operate, including an integrated rights framework and mechanisms for how nature’s rights would be implemented and enforced.
![Nature’s Rights Bill [HL]: HL Bill 7 of 2026–27](https://lordslibrary-parliament.studio24.dev/content/uploads/sites/2/2020/09/Environment-568x426.png)
The UK is a signatory to the convention establishing an international claims commission for Ukraine. The commission would assess claims for compensation for damage and losses caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The House of Lords International Agreements Committee has broadly welcomed the convention, but also raised concerns about the scope and efficacy of the commission.
In January 2026, the government announced a new scheme to support urgent repairs and essential improvements to listed places of worship. Called the ‘Places of worship renewal fund for England’, it replaced the ‘Listed places of worship grant scheme’ which had run since 2001. This briefing provides an overview of both schemes, the government’s reasoning for the change and the reaction of stakeholders.
