Bicameral Parliamentary Scrutiny of Government Bills : A

In 1974 J.A.G. Griffith published his Parliamentary Scrutiny of Government Bills, a meticulous study of the parliamentary impact on legislation. Since then little such detailed work has been done. Yet Griffiths' study interpreted 'Parliament' largely as the House of Commons. He included only limited analysis on the legislative impact of the House of Lords, and no analysis of the interactions between the chambers. Amongst policy makers talk is growing of the assertiveness of the House of Lords and the likely effect of a stronger second chamber on the House of Commons. This paper seeks to update Griffiths' study for one major controversial bill, exploring the relative impact of the two chambers and, particularly, the extent to which they worked together. By analysing all 859 amendments proposed during the passage of the Identity Cards Bill it reveals that the bill's opponents in both chambers coordinated their efforts to a significant extent in order to extract concessions. It therefore questions the assumptions both of weak parliamentary influence, and of two chambers in conflict rather than united in order to bring about policy change. Please do not cite in other academic works without prior consultation with the authors 2 Introduction As one of the more controversial Bills to pass through the UK parliament in recent years, the Identity Cards Bill of 2005-06 faced substantial opposition in both Houses of Parliament. Although it was ultimately passed, a total of 859 amendments were proposed in the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and the bill was subject to both lengthy debates and 'ping pong' between the chambers before final agreement was reached. This bill therefore provides a good opportunity to investigate the dynamics between different actors in the legislative process, and between the two chambers, in what is a changing parliamentary environment.