Packed legislative agenda delivering on the Government’s Plan for Change

As Parliament rises for the Christmas recess, stabilising the economy and strengthening public services in the service of working people have been core to the swift introduction of 30 bills over the last six months.

In the most ambitious legislative programme for 25 years, more than two thirds of the bills in the Government's packed programme are already progressing through Parliament.

With inherited unprecedented challenges - crumbling public services and crippled public finances - the Government will deliver a decade of national renewal through the legislative agenda. 

The bills introduced so far are focused on delivering change for working people. Through the legislative programme, the Government is putting ordinary people at the front of the queue, and rebalancing the systems that have too often left them powerless. Laws brought forward so far will deliver on the Plan for Change and address crumbling public services. 

This includes through:

• The Passenger Rail Service Act - which begins to put rail in the interests of passengers not profits and is one of the first big steps we have taken towards improving the reliability of trains.

• The Bus Service (No.2) Bill - which will put bus services back in the hands of communities, enhance connections to work and vital appointments to improve living standards.

• The Great British Energy Bill - which will take a long-term approach to protect the country from energy insecurity and lower bills. 

• The Renters' Rights Bill - which is putting power in renters' hands, so that people have a secure, safe and good standard place to live. 

• The Employment Rights Bill - which will see the biggest reform to workers rights in a generation. Among other measures, it will end the one-sided flexibility of exploitative zero hours contracts.

• The Water (Special Measures) Bill - which is the first step in a package of reforms to clean up our water, re-balancing our water system in the interests of consumers rather than shareholders. It will give the regulator new powers to ban the bonuses if environmental standards are not met. 

Three bills have already achieved Royal Assent, including the Passenger Rail Services Act that delivers on the manifesto commitment to bring passenger services into public ownership. 

As we embark on the rest of this Parliamentary session in the New Year, there are significant bills to come on planning reform, criminal justice and border security as part of the Plan for Change. These bills include:

• Crime and Policing Bill - which will strengthen community policing and give the police greater powers to deal with anti social behaviour. 

• Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill - which will modernise the asylum and immigration system, establishing a new Border Security Command and delivering enhanced counter terror powers to tackle organised immigration crime.

• Planning and Infrastructure Bill - which will get Britain building, including through planning reform, seeking to accelerate the delivery of high quality infrastructure and housing. 

Delivering change that can be felt by working people will mean doing politics differently. The newly established Modernisation Committee, which is chaired by Lucy Powell, is working to make Parliament more effective and efficient and will be a vehicle to make lasting culture and working practices improvements in Parliament. 

Powell has also taken quick steps further restricting MPs' ability to undertake outside earnings, updating proxy voting rules, and now the Committee concluded its public call for views this week and will now review the contributions to determine its future work programme. 

Leader of the House of Commons, Lucy Powell, commented:

“In the short six months since the election this government has taken major strides that will have a tangible positive impact on people's lives, putting powers in the hands of ordinary people. 

“This government will deliver our Plan for Change and address the real concerns of working people. Our unrelenting legislative agenda will help us achieve that. 

“We have already passed a Bill to put rail in the interests of passengers not profits, brought in the biggest reform to workers rights in a generation and progressed a water bill to end the scandal of excessive bonuses while sewage is leaking and infrastructure degrades.  

“I am determined to change the way that politics works and return Parliament to public service. We will improve standards and make this important institution work as efficiently as possible for the people it serves.” 

Notes for editors

• The Modernisation Committee published a memorandum of understanding detailing its core focuses which is available here. 

• Since July, the government has also made over 70 statements and laid over 320 statutory instruments. The Leader of the House of Commons has taken upwards of 600 questions in weekly Business Questions sessions. 

• This Government's first King's Speech was the most ambitious legislative programme for a new Government in at least 25 years, with 38 Bills, compared to Tony Blair's new Government in 1997 announced 29 Bills in their first session, and David Cameron's Government in 2010 who announced 24. 

• The Bills that have now achieved Royal Assent are: Passenger Rail Services Act, Budget Responsibility Act and the Supply and Appropriation Act. Two further bills have completed their parliamentary passage and are awaiting sign off by the Palace.  

• The Leader of the House of Commons' statement - The Government Legislative Programme 2024 - 18/07/2024