Summary of measures in the Queen's Speech

An EU referendum by the end of 2017 is among a packed programme of new laws in the first Conservative Queen's Speech in nearly two decades.
 
It also includes more free childcare, an income tax freeze and the right-to-buy for housing association tenants. As in the previous post, David Cameron described the 26-bill package was a "programme for working people" that would create full employment and "bring our country together".

The proposed legislation includes:
  • A ban on income tax, VAT and national insurance increases for five years
  • A freeze on working age benefits, tax credits and child benefit for two years from 2016/17
  • 30 hours free childcare a week for three and four-year-olds by 2017
  • Cutting the total amount one household can claim in benefits from £26,000 to £23,000
  • More devolution for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and "English votes for English laws" at Westminster
  • 500 more free schools and more failing and "coasting" schools turned into Academies
  • A ban on so-called legal highs
  • A "truly seven day" NHS by 2020
  • The BBC has a bill-by-bill rundown of the full programme.
  • an Investigatory Powers Bill to give intelligence agencies new tools to target internet data intended to protect citizens from terrorists.
But there will be widespread consultation prior to implementation of proposals which the government will bring forward for a British Bill of Rights to replace the Human Rights Act, with legislation expected following that consultation later in the parliament.

I think it is important we get this legislation right and that a proper British Bill of Rights to protect our ancient freedoms is on our own statute book, rather than outsourcing the protection of our ancient liberties to the ECHR.

There was no mention in the speech of a promised free vote on repeal of the badly drafted and unworkable Hunting Act, but environment secretary Liz Truss said this will happen by 2020.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nick Herbert on his visit to flood hit areas of Cumbria

Please note that the post below was published more than ten year ago on 21st November 2009 Nick Herbert MP, shadow cabinet member for the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, was in Cumbria this morning to see the areas affected by the flooding. He writes on Conservative Home about his visit. Here is an extract. I’ve been in Cumbria today to see the areas affected by the floods. I arrived early in Keswick where I met officials from the Environment Agency. Although the river levels had fallen considerably and homes were no longer flooded, the damage to homes had been done. And the water which had got into houses wasn’t just from the river – it was foul water which had risen from the drains. I talked to fire crews who were pumping flood water back into the river, and discovered that they were from Tyne & Wear and Lancashire. They had been called in at an hours’ notice and had been working on the scene ever since, staying at a local hotel. You cannot fail to be impressed by the
Read more

Quotes of the day 19th August 2020

Image
"Wise men profit more from fools than fools from wise men; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the successes of the wise."  ( Cato the Elder , who lived 234 BC - 149 BC, quoted in "Lives" by Plutarch.) There is a similar saying by Germany's Iron Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck: Benjamin Franklin is supposed to have put the same saying in a more humorous form: "Wise men profit by the mistakes of others, while fools will not learn even from their own blunders." See also this thread on the "Quote Investigator" website . Let us all be wise and learn from the events of the last few days.
Read more

Quote of the day 24th July 2020

I was moved to put the passage below forward as a quote today when I saw a horrible post on twitter from someone writing that it was "excellent" that someone who took a different view from her about Brexit had died. I won't write which way round it was so that all the Remain supporters can assume the post was from a Brexit fanatic welcoming the death of a remainer and all the Leavers can assume it was a Remainiac welcoming one less Brexiteer. There's been plenty of nasty stuff on both sides but if you catch anyone of your own viewpoint  posting something like that who might listen to you, please do call them out on it - and point out that they're giving everyone on your side of the argument a bad name. Anyway, here's the quote from John Donne.
Read more