The legislative process is underway following the King’s Speech, so what bills are planned? This week, Professor Philip Cowley, an expert on parliamentary rebellions, joins the podcast to discuss managing a mega-majority. Intriguingly, he reveals why Keir Starmer reminds him of Robert Redford.
The legislative sausage machine has cranked into action so Mark and Ruth dissect the government’s programme following the King’s Speech. They examine the proposals for major new bills on planning and devolution aimed at galvanising the economy, along with revamped legacy bills the Government is adopting from the previous administration. Where might political tensions and difficulties arise? What insights did the King’s Speech offer on parliamentary matters, and can we expect more bills beyond those identified in the legislative programme?
This week, parliamentary rebellions expert Professor Philip Cowley joins the podcast to discuss the challenges of managing a mega-majority in Parliament. What lessons can Labour learn from the Blair years? Have changes in Parliament over the last 25 years made rebellions more likely? And in a surprising revelation, Phil explains why Keir Starmer reminds him of Robert Redford!
As the initial exhilaration fades and the hard legislative grind begins, many new MPs in previous parliaments have struggled with the enormity of the job and its impact on their lives. We look at what will it be like for the generation of 2024?
Professor Philip Cowley
Professor Philip Cowley is a political scientist at Queen Mary University of London in the School of Politics and International Relations. Specialising in political parties, parliaments, and elections, his extensive research includes numerous books and articles on voting behavior and parliamentary rebellions. He regularly contributes to House Magazine with his column, "The Professor Will See You Now". Previously he co-edited the Hansard Society's quarterly journal, Parliamentary Affairs, and served as co-convenor of the Political Studies Association's Elections, Public Opinion and Parties specialist group.
What are the significant new bills highlighted in the King’s Speech?
Which legacy bills from the previous administration will the government revisit?
How long is the current parliamentary session expected to last?
Why is the government using a statutory instrument for early prisoner release to manage prison overcrowding?
Why hasn’t the Government introduced the proposed 80-year age cap for House of Lords members?
How will the Labour government handle potential rebellions and dissent among backbench MPs?
What roles and challenges do the new MPs elected in the 2024 general election face?
Parliament Matters is supported by a grant from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, a Quaker trust which engages in philanthropy and supports work on democratic accountability.
Hansard Society
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Final Report, May 2024
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00:00:02:07 - 00:00:16:09 You're listening to Parliament matters, a Hansard society production supported by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Learn more at hansardsociety.org.uk/pm. 00:00:16:11 - 00:00:40:02 Welcome to Parliament Matters, the podcast about the institution at the heart of our democracy, Parliament itself. I'm Ruth Fox and I'm Mark D'Arcy. Coming up, the legislative sausage machine cranks into action and there are big new bills on planning and devolution to galvanize the economy. What will it be like for generation 2024 as the new MPs get down to work. And managing a mega majority? 00:00:40:08 - 00:00:52:00 What lessons can Labour learn from the Blair years? Parliamentary rebellions expert Phil Cowley weighs in. 00:00:52:02 - 00:01:15:11 But first, Ruth, we've got to talk about the King's Speech. 36 bills, plus four draft bills. It's a big programme. It's going to be a lot of work for the House of Commons and the House of Lords over the next few months, but it's not unprecedentedly big. No, I mean, it's at the higher end of the spectrum in recent years, but you can go back to 2005 after the election. 00:01:15:11 - 00:01:32:01 Then there were high number of bills, 40 odd, but it is a lot. It will be a hard grind over the course of the session. Interestingly, we don't know how long the session will be. The government hasn't said. Lucy Powell, the leader of the House of Commons, has intimated in some press appearances yesterday that it could be 18 months, possibly longer. 00:01:32:01 - 00:01:54:15 So we'll have to see. But there is a lot to get your teeth into. There's some big political bills which will come on to, but there's also, interestingly, quite a number of bills that the previous government didn't get through when it called the election. And the government's revisiting some of those. It's rebranding some of them. It'll no doubt amend some of them and bring them back in slightly different form, but essentially to achieve the same objectives.
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In this fourth instalment of our special mini-podcast series, we take you inside the Public Bill Committee as it scrutinises the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill - a landmark proposal seeking to legalise assisted dying. The Committee is in full swing, debating amendments, and tensions are running high. We sit down with Sarah Olney MP, a key player in the discussions, to unpack the latest developments.
In this episode we dissect the fallout from Labour’s WhatsApp purge following the Andrew Gwynne affair and what it means for political communication at Westminster. We also explore the latest news from the House of Commons Modernisation Committee, discussing its focus on improving accessibility to Parliament, legislative scrutiny, and the debate over MPs holding second jobs.
The assisted dying bill (Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill) is now at the Committee stage, where a Public Bill Committee reviews the bill clause by clause. This briefing outlines the Committee’s role, how MPs propose changes to the bill and where these are published, how the Chair selects and groups amendments, and how these are debated and voted on.
The assisted dying bill is about to undergo detailed scrutiny by the Public Bill Committee - a group of 23 MPs tasked with reviewing the Bill’s text and proposing amendments to refine and improve it. But what exactly happens during this amendment process? Former House of Commons Clerk, Paul Evans CBE, breaks it down. Plus, we hear from Dr Ben Spencer MP, a former consultant psychiatrist turned parliamentarian, who has proposed dozens of amendments to the Bill.
Stay informed with updates and analysis on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill as it moves through Parliament. Learn about the debates, procedures, decisions, and key milestones shaping the assisted dying legislation.
