Stephen Morgan MP has put his name into a ballot open to all Members of Parliament to have their chance to be selected to table ‘a private member’s bill’. A Private Members’ Bill is a bill sponsored by a Member of Parliament other than a Minister of the Crown.
The exception to other, regular Bills is that a Private Member’s Bill may not have as its main purpose the creation of a ‘charge upon the people’ (a new tax, a tax increase or a similar kind of charge) or of a ‘charge upon the public purse’ (the establishment of a new cause for public expenditure).
Only a very small minority of bills become law, but these Bills are popular devices to help secure important policy changes from the government.
Examples of previous Private Members’ Bills include:
- Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018
- Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act 2018
- Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018
- Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration etc) Act 2019
- Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2019
- Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018
- Stalking Protection Act 2019.
You can find more of last year’s examples here.
The Member of Parliament for Portsmouth South, Stephen Morgan, said:
“Today I have entered my name into this ballot to campaign on behalf of the people of Portsmouth. Despite the challenges, I will do all I can to secure the change people in Portsmouth want to see.”
“If I am successful in this raffle like process, I want to make sure that Portsmouth people are right alongside me in changing the law, after all it is the community set to be most affected.”
Mr Morgan has entered the ballot for Members of Parliament in previous years, since being elected in 2017. Constituents are encouraged to get in touch with their ideas and suggestions.
