Home affairs by topic
Home affairs includes the following topic areas. Please click the links to access lists of publications by topic:
Communities
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Motions on recent changes to planning rules
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) Order 2021 introduces several changes to the local planning framework. It makes it easier to convert a wider range of commercial buildings to residential use; allows further development of schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, prisons and ports; and implements a ‘retain and explain’ policy for certain statues, memorials and monuments. The House of Lords is set to debate motions to reject or ‘regret’ the changes.
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Charities Bill [HL]: Briefing for Lords Stages
The Charities Bill [HL] was announced in the Queen’s Speech on 11 May 2021 and introduced in the House of Lords on 26 May 2021. It is a Law Commission bill and is expected to be subject to the special procedure for these types of bills. In the Lords, this includes the possibility of it being considered by a second reading committee and by a special public bill committee, rather than having the usual House second reading and committee stages.
![Charities Bill [HL]: Briefing for Lords Stages](https://lordslibrary.parliament.uk/content/uploads/sites/2/2020/09/Communities-1-1232x924.png)
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Dormant Assets Bill [HL]: Briefing for Lords Stages
This proposed law seeks to bring more financial assets into the dormant assets scheme, allowing them to be distributed to good causes. A dormant asset is a financial product that has not been used for many years and which the provider has not been able to reunite with its owner.
Crime
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Queen’s Speech 2021: home affairs
The Queen’s Speech is due to take place on 11 May 2021. In this speech, the Government will set out its plans for the new parliamentary session. This article considers what announcements might be made about home affairs.
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Forensic science and the criminal justice system
In May 2019, the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee published a report warning the quality and delivery of forensic science services in England and Wales was inadequate. It recommended several reforms intended to halt the damage this was causing to public trust in the criminal justice system. The House of Lords is scheduled to debate this report on 26 April 2021. This article summarises the committee’s recommendation, the Government’s response and subsequent developments.
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Prisons (Substance Testing) Bill
The Prisons (Substance Testing) Bill is a government supported private member’s bill. It would amend existing legislation to allow prisons to test for a wider range of drugs, including psychoactive substances and prescription and pharmacy medicines, without the need to regularly change legislation in the future.
Culture, media and sport
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Motions on recent changes to planning rules
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) Order 2021 introduces several changes to the local planning framework. It makes it easier to convert a wider range of commercial buildings to residential use; allows further development of schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, prisons and ports; and implements a ‘retain and explain’ policy for certain statues, memorials and monuments. The House of Lords is set to debate motions to reject or ‘regret’ the changes.
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Public service broadcasting: Communications and Digital Committee report
The House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee published its report on the future of public service broadcasting (PSB) in November 2019. The committee concluded that PSB was important to UK media, but made a range of recommendations in light of increased competition from streaming services. Recently, Ofcom has completed a five-year review into PSB. The Government has also launched its own strategic review into PSB.
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Dormant Assets Bill [HL]: Briefing for Lords Stages
This proposed law seeks to bring more financial assets into the dormant assets scheme, allowing them to be distributed to good causes. A dormant asset is a financial product that has not been used for many years and which the provider has not been able to reunite with its owner.
Family and civil law
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To sign or not to sign? Sign language in law, parliament and Covid-19 briefings
Following Deaf Awareness Week this month, this article looks at British sign language and a campaign for the Government to provide an on-set BSL interpreter at the live televised Covid-19 briefings. It also looks at the introduction of BSL interpretation to certain parliamentary proceedings, most notably for prime minister’s questions.
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Covid-19: Empowering women in the recovery from the impact of the pandemic
Women have been specifically affected by the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Reasons for this include that they are over-represented in some of the worst-hit sectors, and that they do a greater share of unpaid care. The Government has said it wants women’s economic empowerment to be a focus in the post-pandemic recovery period. But it has faced criticism for not taking enough account of gender equality in its approach.
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Representation of women in the House of Lords
It has been over 60 years since women gained the right to join the House of Lords. Today, just under a third of members are women. Why is the number of women not equal to that of men?
Immigration
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Asian Youth Movements in the UK: history and legacy
The Asian Youth Movements formed in the United Kingdom in the 1970s, as second generation South Asian people mobilised against racism. Following on from our articles on Black Lives Matter and the early UK Black Panther movement, we take a closer look at their membership, their aims and campaigns, and their legacy within the UK today.
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Queen’s Speech 2021: home affairs
The Queen’s Speech is due to take place on 11 May 2021. In this speech, the Government will set out its plans for the new parliamentary session. This article considers what announcements might be made about home affairs.
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Queen’s Speech 2021: UK-EU relationship
The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement formally entered into force on 1 May 2021, having applied provisionally since the start of the year. However, there are still aspects of the post-Brexit relationship between the UK and the EU that remain to be settled or fully implemented. This article looks at some key dates and deadlines likely to come up in the new parliamentary session.
Justice
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Queen’s Speech 2021: home affairs
The Queen’s Speech is due to take place on 11 May 2021. In this speech, the Government will set out its plans for the new parliamentary session. This article considers what announcements might be made about home affairs.
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Queen’s Speech 2021: justice
The Queen’s Speech is taking place on 11 May 2021. This will set out the Government’s legislative and policy programme for the new parliamentary session. This article provides a summary of legislative proposals for justice and other announcements that may be included in the speech.
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Queen’s Speech 2021: constitution
The Government has stated its intention to introduce several measures relating to the constitution. These include a review of the constitution, repeal of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 and legislation to improve the integrity of elections.
Security
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Telecommunications (Security) Bill: Briefing for Lords Stages
The Telecommunications (Security) Bill is a government bill to improve the regulation of the UK telecoms market in order to protect the security of the UK’s telecoms infrastructure. Second reading of the Telecommunications (Security) Bill is scheduled to take place in the House of Lords on 29 June 2021. This briefing provides a summary of the bill and its passage through the House of Commons.
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Queen’s Speech 2021: digital, culture, media and sport
The Queen’s Speech is taking place on 11 May 2021. This will set out the Government’s legislative and policy programme for the new parliamentary session. This article provides a summary of the Government’s proposals for digital, culture, media and sport that may be included in the speech.
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Forensic science and the criminal justice system
In May 2019, the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee published a report warning the quality and delivery of forensic science services in England and Wales was inadequate. It recommended several reforms intended to halt the damage this was causing to public trust in the criminal justice system. The House of Lords is scheduled to debate this report on 26 April 2021. This article summarises the committee’s recommendation, the Government’s response and subsequent developments.
