MINISTRY OF JUSTICE

~ HA NOI LAW UNIVERSITY ~

GROUP PRESENTATION
SUBJECT: LEGAL ENGLISH
TOPIC: LEGISLATION

Class: N10 - 4623

Group member: Lê Minh Huyền
Nguyễn Tuấn Minh
Phạm Minh Thảo
 SOURCES OF LAW: LEGISLATION
I. OVERVIEW OF LEGISLATION

Legislation refers to a legislative body's drafting and enactment of legislation

through its lawmaking process. The legislative process involves assessing,
revising, and voting on proposed laws, and it is concerned with the language used
in the bill to communicate the proposal's values, judgements, and goals. When a
bill is written, a concept becomes a piece of legislative activity. A bill is a draft, or
a preliminary version, of what may become written legislation. An act or statute is
a bill that has been passed into law.

The appropriate constitution governs the overall method for enacting laws. A bill is
referred to a committee when it is initially introduced by a sponsor. If a bill must
pass through multiple committees, the first must refer it to the second. A bill can be
changed to satisfy interested and impacted groups as well as to correct technical
flaws. If the committee recommends that the bill be enacted, it is placed on the
parliamentary agenda for full legislative body action, often known as floor action.
Legislators vote on the bill's final passage after a protracted and complex process
of deliberation and debate. In bicameral legislatures, a bill must pass both houses
in the exact same form in order to become law. When the two houses of the
legislature cannot agree on a final form for the bill, a complicated compromise
procedure is tried. Once the bill is approved by both houses and is put into final
form , it must be signed by the executive . An executive can refuse to sign a bill
and can return it to the legislature with a vote message explain why. If the
executive signs the bill, it is filed and becomes law.

II. TYPES OF LEGISLATION IN UNITED KINGDOM

The predominant sources of law in the United Kingdom are:

 Primary legislation, known as Acts of Parliament or statutes, which begin

life as drafts called Bills.
  Secondary or delegated legislation, such as statutory instrument, bye-
laws, and professional regulations.

1. Primary legislation (known as Acts of Parliament…)

a. What is an Act of Parliament?

An Act of Parliament enacts a new law or modifies existing law. An Act is a Bill
that has received Royal Assent from the Monarch after being approved by both the
House of Commons and the House of Lords. Acts of Parliament, when taken
collectively, make up what is known in the United Kingdom as Statute Law.

b. There are two types of primary legislation:

*Public General Acts : Every year, between 25 and 50 new Public Acts are
introduced. Since 1999, most Public General Acts have been accompanied by
Explanatory Notes that describe in plain English what the Act aims to accomplish
and how it will be implemented.

*Local and Personal Acts :

- These Acts have an impact on a specific location, person, or body. In recent

years, there have been fewer than five per year, but these Acts were employed in
relation to boroughs, railways, canal corporations, and enclosed property
throughout the Victorian era. Prior to 1857, when divorce became available in
secular courts, Personal Acts were an essential technique of getting a divorce.

- In the United Kingdom, primary legislation can take a number of different forms:

 An Act of Parliament.

 An Act of the Scottish Parliament, Measure or Act of the Senedd or Act of

the Northern Ireland Assembly.

 An Order in Council made under the Royal Prerogative.

 Church of England Measures – the instruments by which changes are made

to legislation relating to the administration and organisation of the Church.
2. Secondary legislation (delegated legislation)

a. What is Secondary Legislation?

Secondary legislation is law enacted by ministers (or other bodies) with the

authority granted by an Act of Parliament.

It is used to complete Acts' information (primary legislation). These specifics

provide practical means for enforcing and implementing the law in everyday life.

Secondary legislation can be used to specify the date on which an Act's provisions
become law, as well as to change existing laws.

For example, governments frequently utilize secondary legislation, such as the

Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, to ban new substances in reaction to new information
about their risks.

b. Types of secondary legislation

There are three main types of secondary legislation:

*Statutory instrusments: Statutory Instruments (SIs) are legal documents drafted

by government agencies to amend the law. They are accompanied with an
explanatory memorandum that explains the SI's objective and why the change is
required. SIs are the most common sort of secondary legislation, with over 3,500
issued each year, however only about 1,000 require Parliament's consideration.
They are frequently referred to as a rule, order, or regulation.

*Bye-laws: Local governments can adopt bylaws to handle issues in their own

jurisdiction. For example, west Yorkshire county council can enact laws that
impact the entire county, but a district or town council can only make bylaws for
its own district or town. Traffic regulation, such as parking limits, may be included
in local bylaws. Public corporations and certain companies can also make by-laws
for matters involving the public under their jurisdiction. This means that
organizations like the British Airports Authority and the railways can impose
public behavior guidelines on their property. The smoking prohibition on London's
subway system is one example of this.
*Orders in council: In the council, the Queen and the Privy Council have the
authority to issue commands. The Prime Minister and several senior government
officials make up the Privy Council. Delegated legislation allows the government
to pass legislation without having to go through parliament. Its primary purpose
now is to give European directives legal effect. However, under the emergency
powers act of 1920 and the civil contingencies act of 2004, the Privy Council has
the right to establish law in emergency situations. Orders in council will be used to
make other sorts of law.

c. Advantages and disadvantages of secondary legislation

*Advantages:

- It saves time. Parliament is only able to pass about 50 Acts of Parliament per
year. It is therefore vital for it to delegate power to make the thousands of other
necessary laws.

- It is flexible. Secondary legislation can be passed more quickly if they are not
required to go through the official legislation process

- It is made by experts.

*Disadvantages:

- It is undemocratic because it is made by unelected people rather than by

Parliament

- The sheer quantity of delegated laws made each year makes it difficult for the
public to be informed of all the changes to the law.

- Although there are controls and checks for delegated legislation, the large
quantity makes it difficult for proper scrutiny to occur.

III.PURPOSES OF PASSING A NEW ACT

A new Act is passed to:

- Update or amend existing legislation

- Legislate for new circumstances and enforce government policies

- Ensure UK compliance with International of European Union Law

- Consolidate laws by bringing together into one statue all the existing statues on
one topic

- Codify rules by bringing together all the case law and statues on a particular
subject where the principles are established

IV. THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS

1. The consultation papers

The government may proceed to initiate a consultative process by the publication

of a Green Paper. It’s consultation documents produced by the government to
allow both inside and outside Parliament to give feedback or comment on its policy
or legislative proposals. After considering any response, the government may
publish a second document in the form of a White Paper. It’s policy documents
produced by the government that set out their proposals for future legislation.
White papers are often published as command papers and may include a draft
version of a Bill that is being planned. This provides a basis for further
consultation and discussion with interested or affected groups and allows final
changes to be made before a Bill is formally presented to Parliament. A Bill does
not have to be preceded by a White or Green paper , although it may have been
presented for public scrutiny , that is , examination , in draft form earlier

2.Draft Acts of Parliament (Bills)

a. What is a Bill

The term "bill" refers to a draft act of parliament. A Bill is a proposal for a new
legislation or a reform to an existing law that is brought before Parliament for
debate.

b. Types of Bills

 Public Bills: Public Bills are proposed changes to the law that affect the
broader public. The Government introduces almost all of the Public Bills
that are successfully passed by Parliament.The great majority of Public Bills
 that come before Parliament each year, however, are backbenchers' Bills
(also known as Private Members' Bills), which are rarely passed but are
frequently used by individual MPs and members of the House of Lords to
push for a change in the law.

 Private Bills: Private Bills are frequently advocated by organizations such as

local governments or private enterprises in order to grant themselves powers
that are not granted by the general law or that are in contradiction with it.
Private Bills only affect the law as it pertains to a specific person or
organization, not the wider public. Individuals or groups who may be
impacted by these changes can file a petition in Parliament opposing the
proposed Bill and convey their concerns to MPs and Lords committees.

 Hybrid Bills: Hybrid bills combine the benefits of both public and private
bills. A Hybrid Bill's proposed changes to the law would have a broad
influence on the public, but they would also have a major impact on specific
persons or groups. The bill that was enacted to build the Channel Tunnel
was an example of a hybrid bill.

2. Preparation of the Bill

If a bill is given a slot in the legislative programme, the department concerned

will create a bill team to co-ordinate its preparation and passage through
Parliament. This will consist of a bill manager and other officials working on
the bill. The other key players in the department will be the officials with lead
responsibility for the policies in the bill and the department’s legal advisers.

The policy officials will prepare policy instructions for the departmental
lawyers. These instructions will in turn form the basis of instructions to the
Office of Parliamentary Counsel to draft the bill. Instructions to counsel will set
out the background and relevant current law and explain the changes in the law
to be brought about by the bill. There will usually be at least two counsel
assigned to the bill, and larger bills may well have more drafters. They will
analyse the instructions and may have questions that need to be answered before
drafting can begin. Once the drafters feel they have a clear idea of the policy,
they will send drafts to the relevant departmental lawyers. The lawyers will
discuss the drafts with the relevant policy officials and send comments back.
The first draft of a clause or set of clauses for a topic is rarely the final word on
that topic, and the process of drafting and commenting on drafts will continue
until the drafters and the department are happy that the right result has been
achieved by the draft in the clearest possible way.

Some provisions in a bill may require input from departments other than the one
sponsoring the bill. If the provisions of the bill apply to Wales or extend to
Scotland or Northern Ireland, it may also be necessary for the department or the
drafter to consult the devolved administration in the relevant part of the UK.
Provisions in a bill which relate to matters that have been devolved to the
National Assembly for Wales, the Scottish Parliament or the Northern Ireland
Assembly will usually need the consent of that body.

3. The Parliamentary process.

Before any legislative proposal, known at that stage as a Bill, can become an Act
of Parliament, it must proceed through, and be approved by, both Houses of
Parliament and must receive the Royal Assent. The ultimate location of power,
however, is the House of Commons, which has the authority of being a
democratically elected institution. A Bill must be given three readings in both the
House of Commons and the House of Lords before it can be presented for the
Royal Assent. It is possible to commence the procedure in either House, although
money Bills must be placed before the Commons in the first instance.

 At the first reading: This is purely a formal procedure in which its title is
read and a date set for its second reading.

 At the second reading: This is a debate in the chamber about the bill's key
ideas. The debate will be opened by a government minister who will lay out
the reasons for the measure and explain its features. The opposition will
respond, and other members will have the opportunity to discuss it. The
government will respond to the points raised at the end of the debate. At this
time, no revisions to the bill's language can be introduced, though members
may give an indication of the changes they will propose at a later time. The
bill will be voted on by the House at the conclusion of the debate. The bill
cannot move on if the government loses the vote, but this is an unusual
occurrence for a government bill to be defeated at this point.
 Committee stage: Following its second reading, the Bill is referred to a
standing committee, whose task is to examine the Bill's provisions in depth,
clause by clause. The committee has the authority to change it in order to
ensure that it complies with the House's general approval provided at its
second reading. A Bill may, on rare occasions, be referred to a special
standing committee, which evaluates the concerns before proceeding with
the bill as a regular standing committee would. Additionally, certain Bills
may be considered by the entire House during the committee stage. These
are constitutionally significant bills, such as the House of Lords Bill, which
suggested reforming the Upper House in 1999.Other Bills that need to be
passed very quickly and certain financial measures, including at least part of
each year’s Finance Bill, are also considered by the committee of the whole
House.

 Report stage: when a bill is returned to the House after its committee stage.
The whole House reviews the amended form of the bill. This is an
opportunity for reconsideration and decision on points revised during the
committee stage, and for further amendments to be proposed.

 At the third reading: The third reading is the last chance for each House to
debate and vote on the measure in its entirety. It normally happens right after
the report stage as the following item of business on the same day in the
Commons. The bill's debate is usually brief, and modifications cannot be
submitted in the Commons until the third reading. Between report stage and
third reading in the Lords, at least three sitting days normally pass, and
modifications can be proposed at this point if the topic has not been
completely studied and voted on at a previous stage. The bill proceeds to
first reading in the other chamber after third reading in the chamber where it
was first introduced. Before Private Members' Bills may be considered, a
sponsor must be secured in the other House.

 Consideration of Amendments: The two Houses must agree on the final

language of a bill before it can become law, but just allowing each House to
follow these processes will not accomplish this. The bill is sent to the second
House after it has been changed by the first House. There will be changes
(amendments) made at the end of the stages in the second House that the
 first House has not had a chance to see or evaluate. These amendments are
forwarded back to the House of Commons, which may or may not accept
them. Unagreed-upon amendments are sent back to the second House, which
can agree to drop it, insist on it, or send back a compromise alteration. The
Houses can disagree and continue to bounce one or more adjustments back
and forth (thus the term 'ping pong'). If the Houses cannot agree then there
can be no Act of Parliament and, at the end of the Session, the bill fails. It
must be brought to Parliament the next Session, if there is still a desire for
the legislation, and the process must begin all over again.

 Royal assent: A bill that has been passed by both Houses becomes law once
it has been given Royal Assent and this has been signified to Parliament. It
will then be an act. Even then, the act may not have any practical
consequences for a long time. The majority of provisions in an act will take
effect either within a certain length of time after Royal Assent (usually two
months) or at a time set by the government. This allows the government and
individuals who will be directly affected by the act to plan ahead of time.
Some of the features of the new system may need to be filled in by the
government through regulations or orders issued under the act's authorities,
such as dealing with procedural issues.Three to five years after a bill has
been passed, the department responsible for the act resulting from it will
normally review how it has worked in practice and submit an assessment of
this to the relevant Commons departmental committee. The committee will
then decide whether it wants to carry out a fuller post-legislative enquiry
into the act.

REFERENCES :

1.https://www.gov.uk/guidance/legislative-process-taking-a-bill-through-
parliament
2.The English legal system fifteenth edition 2014-2015, Gary Slapper and David
Kelly

3. https://www.law.cornell.edu/legislation.

4.Parliament and the Legislative process , the Authority of the House of Lords

5.The Legislative Process : Preparing Legislation for Parliament , the Authority of

the House of Lords

6. https://www.parliament.uk/

7. https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/legal-research-and-mooting-skills-programme/
legislation?
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