Westminster Returns
12 July 2024
| by Field Team
Seven days on and the General Election already feels a lifetime ago.
Westminster is back in action and the rumour mill is in full swing ahead of the highly anticipated State Opening of Parliament. Scheduled for next Wednesday 17th July, this landmark event will be a significant moment for our new Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, as King Charles delivers his Speech in the House of Lords to set out the new government's agenda.
So what will Wednesday look like?
The State Opening begins with a grand procession where the King will travel by carriage from Buckingham Palace to Westminster. Upon arrival, he will enter through the Sovereign's Entrance, a privilege reserved solely for the monarch. The King will then process to the throne in the House of Lords, before MPs are summoned by Black Rod, a top Commons official called Sarah Clarke. In a display of parliamentary independence, Black Rod will find the door to the House of Commons shut in her face and she will have to knock three times to gain entry. MPs will follow Black Rod back to the House of Lords to hear the King’s Speech. Tradition sees a government MP "held hostage" at Buckingham Palace, ensuring the monarch's safe return after the end of the speech.
But what’s going to be in the speech?
The Government is said to be preparing at least 30 Bills. Key focus areas will include housebuilding, green energy, crime, and voter registration, alongside the anticipated nationalisation of railways, with the establishment of Great British Railways being one of Labour’s major legislative promises during the election campaign.
The speech will also propose an aggressive housebuilding programme and a “take back control” Bill, designed to devolve powers over energy, transport, skills, and planning to local mayors and councils.
To ensure fiscal transparency, the government is also set to introduce legislation empowering the Office for Budget Responsibility to publish independent forecasts of major fiscal events, a move which aims to prevent a repeat of the 2022 mini-budget fiasco which took place under Liz Truss. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has committed to enacting this Bill within her first 100 days in office.
Energy independence will be another key element of the speech, with the unveiling of legislation to create Great British Energy, a new publicly owned clean energy company, signalling a major push towards renewable energy sources and sustainability.
The speech will also feature NHS reform and the reintroduction of policies abandoned by the previous Conservative government, such as the ban on no-fault evictions. At least two Home Office bills are also expected along with several technology-related bills, including one strengthening AI regulation.
With such a packed agenda on the cards, the speech will then be debated in the House of Commons for several days before MPs vote on it…meaning there is a strong possibility of MPs having to work in Westminster on a Friday, there truly is a new government in town!
(Photo via IfG)