Great Repeal Bill – Latch On To The Affirmative

Our previous post considered the 'Henry VIII powers' which the Bill would grant to Ministers of the Crown and the devolved governments, authorising them, by means of regulations, to modify not only secondary legislation (ie other regulations, orders and rules), but also primary legislation (ie Acts of Parliament). This post looks at the other side of the same coin, namely, the mechanisms which the Bill provides for Parliament (and, in outline, the devolved legislatures) to scrutinise such legislation before it becomes law.

Bills go through a number of stages in both House of Commons and House of Lords before becoming Acts of Parliament. This allows MPs and the Lords to consider and vote on the provisions. Delegated legislation, on the other hand, is subject to much simpler scrutiny procedures, specified in the Act under which they are made.