Queen delivering speech at State Opening of Parliament.
Today at the State Opening of Parliament the Queen delivered her address outlining the legislative agenda of the Coalition Government for the forthcoming parliamentary session.
The State Opening takes place on the first day of a new parliamentary session, or shortly after a general election, and is the main ceremonial event of the parliamentary calendar.
You can watch the full speech on the UKParliament YouTube channel.
In total there are 15 bills and 4 draft bills proposed. These include:-
- House of Lords Reform Bill – to modernise and reduce the membership of the House of Lords
- Pension Bill – to raise the state pension age to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and make it more sustainable as average lifespan increases
- Banking Reform Bill – to split banks into retail and investment arms and reduce taxpayer risk in the event of a bank going bust
- Draft Communications Bill – could allow police and intelligence agencies to more easily collect data on texts and emails
Following the Queen’s speech the House of Commons returns to its Chambers, the House of Lords is cleared, and the Debate of the Address begins: five days of debate on the content of the speech.
You can find out more about the State Opening of Parliament from this House of Lords Briefing Paper or from the UK Parliament website.
For any further information on UK Government procedure or legislation contact the Maps, Official Publications and Statistics Unit on level 7 of the Library.
Categories: Library, Official Publications
Tags: 2012, bills, draft, government, legislation, Maps Official Publications and Statistics Unit, opening, opening of parliament, parliament, parliamentary, politics, procedure, queen, reform, session, speech, state, state opening of parliament
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