Research Briefing
The budget set out the Government’s plans for taxation and spending over the next five years. It also included the Office for Budget Responsibility’s assessment of the economy and forecasts for growth, the public sector finances, unemployment and inflation. It illustrated the effect of coronavirus on the economy and described how the Government aims to deal with the recovery from the pandemic.
Research Briefing
This House of Lords Library briefing provides lists of the female life Peers and the female hereditary Peers who have been Members of the House of Lords.
Research Briefing
This briefing lists current members of the House of Lords who have held selected roles in public life. The chosen senior positions range across politics, government, defence, the judiciary, education, culture, media, and religion.
Research Briefing
The bill would create a discretionary power to enable ministers and certain Opposition office holders to take six months paid maternity leave subject to certain conditions. This briefing considers: the background to the bill; what it would do; what happened during its passage through the House of Commons; and the wider reaction to the bill.
Research Briefing
The aim of the National Security and Investment Bill is to reform how inward investment in the UK is investigated to ensure hostile governments or other entities do not use this to undermine the UK’s national security. The second reading of the bill is scheduled to take place in the House of Lords on 4 February 2021. This briefing provides a summary of the bill and its passage through the House of Commons.
Research Briefing
In 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced 58 new life peers. This took the total number of life peers created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 to 1,517. This briefing provides information and statistics on these peerage creations. This includes breakdowns by decade and by prime minister. It also contains a list of every life peer appointed under the Act.
Research Briefing
This bill proposes changes to the financial services regulatory regime.
Research Briefing
On 18 March 2020, the Government introduced the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill in the House of Commons. It completed report stage and third reading in the Commons on 3 November 2020. Second reading in the House of Lords is scheduled to take place on 20 January 2021.
Research Briefing
This government bill seeks to increase awareness of domestic abuse, strengthen support for victims and improve the effectiveness of the justice system. The bill includes provisions on several areas. It includes a new definition of domestic abuse, extra protection for victims and witnesses in court, and codifies the principle that consent to offences involving violent or abusive behaviour is not a defence.
Research Briefing
This briefing provides an update on the size of the House of Lords and recent statements on the issue following the new peerages announced this year. As at 20 November 2020, the size of the absolute membership was 820. This represented an increase in the size of the membership from the end of the 2017–19 session, but is lower than the peak of 845 at the end of the 2015–16 session.
Research Briefing
The bill would provide for the next business rates revaluation to take effect from 1 April 2023. This briefing considers: the background to the bill, including recent government proposals to change the frequency of revaluation; what the bill would do; and what happened to it during its passage through the House of Commons.
Research Briefing
This briefing examines the role of the security and intelligence services, law enforcement agencies and several public authorities in authorising covert human intelligence sources to participate in criminal conduct.
Research Briefing
The United Kingdom Internal Market Bill is a government bill that would make provision for the continuation of the UK’s single market when the transition period ends on 31 December 2020. As part of this it would provide for the ‘market access principles’ of mutual recognition and non-discrimination to apply to the sale of goods and the provision of services within the UK. It also seeks to provide unfettered access for qualifying Northern Ireland goods to the market in Great Britain. It contains provisions that seek to give ministers the power to unilaterally interpret, modify the application of or disapply parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol, notwithstanding their obligations under relevant international and domestic law.
Research Briefing
The Fire Safety Bill is a government bill, and forms part of the Government’s response to the Grenfell fire. It seeks to clarify the scope of the Fire Safety Order 2005, specifically to ensure that the responsible person or duty-holder for multi-occupied, residential buildings must manage and reduce the risk of fire for the structure and external walls of the building, including cladding, balconies and windows; and for entrance doors to individual flats that open into common parts.
Research Briefing
This briefing examines recent government policy towards the administration of business rates on public lavatories in England and Wales.
Total results (page 21 of 95)