Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill: HL Bill 30 of 2022–23
This proposed law seeks to reform and strengthen the protections for freedom of speech and academic freedom in higher education.

The Schools Bill would implement many of the proposals set out in the government’s recent policy papers on schools and school funding. These include measures aimed at making it easier for schools to become academies; changes to the national funding formula; and introducing a register of children being educated outside of schools.
Schools Bill [HL] (359 KB , PDF)
The House of Lords is scheduled to debate the second reading of the Schools Bill [HL] on 23 May 2022. The bill was announced in the Queen’s Speech on 10 May 2022 and introduced in the House of Lords on 11 May 2022.
The explanatory notes to the bill highlight the government’s “long-term vision to improve the school system”, including ambitions to improve attainment in both literacy and numeracy. The government has described the bill as underpinning its education ambitions for England, the majority of which were outlined in the government white paper on schools ‘Opportunity for all: Strong schools with great teachers for your child’, published in March 2022.
The bill includes a range of measures on issues such as:
The Labour Party has described the bill as “narrow in scope, hollow in ambition and thin on policy”. The Liberal Democrats have been critical of its focus on school structures.
Plans to introduce a register of children not in schools were welcomed by the National Education Union (NEU) and the National Association of Headteachers (NAHT). The Local Government Association welcomed plans to increase the schools inspector Ofsted’s powers to inspect schools operating illegally, without registration.
However, overall the NEU was critical of what it described as the “piecemeal and patchwork approach” of the bill. The NAHT noted that the government’s ambition to reform school structures outlined in the schools white paper was “likely to be controversial”.
The majority of the provisions in the bill apply to England only.
Schools Bill [HL] (359 KB , PDF)
This proposed law seeks to reform and strengthen the protections for freedom of speech and academic freedom in higher education.
Education measures in the 2022 Queen’s Speech are likely to be dominated by provisions outlined in the schools white paper, published in March 2022. In addition, proposals for new national standards on provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and legislation on school funding and the lifelong loan entitlement (LLE) are expected. A carry-over motion, agreed in April 2022, will also see the continuation of the passage of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill.
An education white paper published on 28 March 2022 set out the Government’s ambition for all schools to be part of a multi-academy trust by 2030. This policy has been criticised by some, who argue that multi-academy trusts are not more effective or efficient than other types of school structure.