What happens now that MPs have backed Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill?

Published

5 months ago

January 18, 2024

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Rishi Sunak’s flagship Rwanda legislation has been approved by MPs, but getting deportation flights off the ground remains far from a done deal.

The legislation will now be pushed further through the parliamentary sausage machine that includes the House of Lords, parliamentary ping pong, and then potentially a nod from the King.

But what exactly happens next, can the bill be changed – and could it even be stopped from becoming law?

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What next?

After passing its third reading in the House of Commons, it has to go through the exact same processes in the House of Lords.

This includes an initial vote – and then if it passes, peers can propose amendments. These would then be debated and voted on.

Due to the Lords regulating itself, the restrictions on the amount of time that can be taken to debate are looser, and so things can move slightly slower than in the Commons.

Unlike in the Commons, the Lords is not bound in the same way by government restrictions on what can be discussed or how long for.

After the House votes on what substantial amendments it wants to make, members “tidy-up” the bill to make sure there are no loopholes.

It is at this point that “ping pong” begins; the bill will bounce between the Commons and Lords, with each house voting on whether to accept the other’s amendments.

There is a potential that the Lords could delay the bill until the next general election – but that is something which will be covered in a later section.

It is worth noting the government does not have a majority in the Lords – with 270 of 785 peers belonging to the Conservative Party.

Over what timeline could this proceed?

Another question is when the Lords will start considering the bill, and when voting will take place.

As with many things to do with the Westminster parliamentary process, very little is set in stone and the best we can do is take an educated guess.

One Labour source set out their expectation of how the next few months will go.

They said the earliest the Lords could have a debate and a vote is in the week starting 29 January.

The next step – when the upper chamber debates the bill and any potential changes – could take place between 12 February and 14 February, when the Commons is in recess.

The next set of voting in the Lords would likely take place towards the end of February or the start of March.

Ping pong would likely begin in the second week of March. If the government gets the bill passed, then it is likely to take a few months for things to be put in place for flights to Rwanda to take off.

Could the Lords block the bill?

In short, yes.

In the first instance, members could simply vote down the legislation, although that is quite unlikely.

It could also be held up during the ping pong stage.

This would see the two houses adding and removing each other’s amendments on repeated occasions.

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The Lords’ ability to hold up legislation is normally balanced by the fact that a government can reintroduce a bill in a subsequent parliament session – which would mean after a King’s Speech – and pass it without the Lords’ consent.

But this step – included in the Parliament Act – also requires a minimum of a year between the first Commons vote on the legislation, and it passing the same House in the subsequent parliament.

Because an election needs to be called in December this year at the latest, it is possible for the Lords to wait out the clock until then – preventing the use of the Parliament Act.

In what may prove a difficult development for the government, a committee set up to evaluate international treaties on behalf of the Lords has recommended the treaty upon which the Safety of Rwanda Bill is based should not be ratified.

The International Agreements Committee said ratification “should wait until parliament is satisfied that the protections it provides have been fully implemented since parliament is being asked to make a judgement, based on the treaty, about whether Rwanda is safe“.

Politics

US banking lobby last-minute bid to stop Biden vetoing SAB 121 overturn

Published

5 hours ago

June 2, 2024

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US banking lobby last-minute bid to stop Biden vetoing SAB 121 overturn

The American Bankers Association claims that United States President Joe Biden’s move will “harm investors, customers, and ultimately the financial system.”

Politics

Sir Keir Starmer announces plans to lower legal migration

Published

7 hours ago

June 2, 2024

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Sir Keir Starmer announces plans to lower legal migration

Labour has announced its plans to reduce net migration – with Sir Keir Starmer accusing the Conservatives of having “repeatedly broken their promises” to get the number down.

It marks another attempt by the Labour Party to appeal to Conservative voters.

Figures published after Rishi Sunak called the general election showed a net of 685,000 arrived in the UK last year – down from a record of 764,000 in 2022.

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The 2023 figure is still three times the number in 2019 when the last election took place. The Conservatives promised in their manifesto that year to get net migration down.

In 2012, when the data from the Office for National Statistics starts, net migration was just under 200,000.

Sir Keir said he wanted to see any government he leads ban “the practices employed by businesses who exploit the migration system by illegally undercutting working conditions”.

The announcement tonight mirrors policies proposed by shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper in November last year, and some bear similarities to current government objectives.

Sir Keir added: “With Labour, Britain will be less reliant on migration by training more UK workers.

“The Tories have repeatedly broken their promises to bring down net migration. Since 2010, they have published four manifestos promising to bring down net migration.”

The Labour leader said he wants to compel parts of Whitehall to cooperate so “migration triggers a plan to train UK workers and improve jobs”.

Employment sectors like health and construction that have been reliant on migration to fill “skill gaps” will be made to draw up workforce plans, with another pledge to reform the points-based migration system.

The aim, according to Labour, is to “fire up skills training rather than look overseas”.

One pledge is to ban employers and agencies that break employment law from hiring overseas workers.

Another is to stop the “workplace exploitation” of foreign workers being used to undercut wages.

Some in the Conservative Party have claimed Labour are rebranding policies the government has already enacted.

The government previously pledged to increase the threshold on salaries required for visas, and pledged to scrap “cut-price shortage labour from overseas” by scrapping discounts to visa salary requirements for those in short-staffed sectors.

Those employers looking to get on the shortage occupation list have to show they are also training domestic workers.

Conservative candidate Jonathan Gullis tweeted that “nobody buys” Sir Keir’s plans.

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A spokesperson for Reform UK, which is campaigning heavily on reducing immigration, said: “Sir Keir’s first suggestion is to prosecute a law that already exists about illegally paying below minimum wage, the other is a pious wish.

“Labours offer is nothing new and will make no difference. If you want to make a change, Vote Reform to freeze immigration.”

Politics

Conservatives pledge £1bn to increase number of GP appointments – but will cut NHS management

Published

7 hours ago

June 2, 2024

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Conservatives pledge £1bn to increase number of GP appointments - but will cut NHS management

The Conservative government has pledged £1bn a year in a bid to increase the number of GP appointments in the UK.

The Tories say they would build both GP surgeries and community diagnostic centres if they were re-elected to government.

The party wants to build 100 new GP surgeries and modernise another 150.

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However, this bears echoes of the 2019 promise to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 – something the government will not be able to do, according to the National Audit Office.

The report released last year found only 32 of the 40 new hospitals promised by Boris Johnson would be built by the end of the decade – and some may be too small.

The Conservatives also want to increase the range of treatments available for people at pharmacies, after previously introducing the scheme.

They claim treating conditions such as acne and chest infections would free up 20 million GP appointments once fully fired up.

Rishi Sunak said: “The NHS is one of our most important national assets and the Conservatives are taking the long-term decisions to secure its future.

“As part of our clear plan we are investing in community services making it quicker, easier and more convenient for patients to receive the care they need and help to relieve pressure on hospital services.

“Only the Conservatives will take the bold action needed to secure the NHS’s future so that you can be safe in the knowledge that the NHS will be there for you and your family whenever you need it.”

It comes as the Tories continue to languish in the polls behind Labour.

Meanwhile, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told the Mail on Sunday that his party’s tax cuts failed to draw in voters – and also said another cut would not have changed opinions.

He said: “The fact that we’ve had two significant tax cuts that haven’t really changed the polls demonstrates to me that having a third one with the same again is unlikely to change the calculus.”

He added: “The Bank of England’s view is that there’s an 18-month delay between changing interest rates and it impacting on people’s finances… so the idea that you have a drop in interest rates and suddenly everyone feels good… is to underestimate how people are making this decision.”

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The government’s healthcare pledge will require an extra £1bn by the end of the decade, and will be funded by cutting NHS managers to pre-COVID levels and reducing the use of management consultants, they said.

The announcement comes as Labour announced its plans for cutting legal migration.

Labour’s shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said: “The Conservatives have broken their manifesto promise to recruit more GPs, instead cutting 1,700 since 2016 and closing down more than 450 GP practices.

“Patients are finding it harder than ever before to see a GP, so why would they trust this latest empty promise?

“The doctor can’t see you now, and it will only get worse if the Tories are given another five years.

“Labour will train thousands more GPs and cut the red tape that ties up GPs’ time, so we can bring back the family doctor.”