Topic 1 Legislation test Topic 1 Legislation

Topic 1 Legislation test

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 1 Name three institutions of Parliament involved in the legislation process.

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 1 • the House of Commons • the House of Lords • the monarch

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 2 Which type of bills are the most successful and why?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 2 Government bills are most successful, as the government controls the legislative agenda and it has a majority.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 3 Why are private members’ bills not very successful?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 3 • Private members’ bills do not have the backing of their party. • The MPs must have their names picked from a ballot, with only 20 selected each year. • MPs must adhere to the Ten-Minute Rule, and other MPs may filibuster.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 4 Name a successful private members’ bill.

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 4 Sydney Silverman (a Labour MP) introduced a private members’ bill that brought about the Murder (Abolition of the Death Penalty) Act 1965.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 5 When is free vote called?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 5 If the House is considering a controversial bill, it may hold a free vote (without using the whips) in order to gauge the opinions of Parliament.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 6 What is the difference between a Green Paper and a White Paper?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 6 A Green Paper is a discussion document and a White Paper is a statement of intent.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 7 At what stage are the Green Paper and the White Paper introduced?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 7 They are introduced at the consultation stage.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 8 Who writes the bill into legal terminology?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 8 The Parliamentary Counsel, also known as parliamentary draftsmen.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 9 Which type of bill must start in the House of Commons?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 9 Finance bill.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 10 How did Professor Michael Zander describe the first reading?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 10 ‘A pure moment of nothing’.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 11 What two things happen at the second reading?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 11 There is a debate and a vote.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 12 How will the political parties try to ensure support from their MPs?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 12 Whips.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 13 Name the two stages after the second reading (in the correct order).

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 13 Committee stage and report stage.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 14 Who sits in the House of Lords?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 14 The House of Lords consists of Lords Spiritual (bishops) and Lords Temporal (life peers and Law Lords).

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 15 What powers does the House of Lords possess?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 15 The House of Lords can delay a bill for 1 year (1 month for a finance bill).

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 16 What is the main advantage of the House of Lords’ involvement in the legislation process?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 16 The House of Lords can scrutinise the legislation.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 17 What does the Parliament Act allow the House of Commons to do?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 17 It allows it to bypass the House of Lords. It allows the House of Commons to pass a bill for royal assent without the consent of the House of Lords.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 18 What is the next stage of reforms of the House of Lords proposed by the current Labour government?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 18 It proposes to remove the remaining hereditary peers and to move the Law Lords to a separate supreme court.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 19 How is the royal assent stage described by critics?

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 19 They have referred to it as ‘a rubber-stamping’ exercise.

Topic 1 Legislation test Question 20 Name an Act of Parliament that was rushed through the legislation process.

Topic 1 Legislation test Answer 20 Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.