Learning Disability campaigners have announced recently that they are attempting to initiate a Private Members’ Bill, called the LB Bill, to try and put the choices of disabled people and their families at the heart of the decision-making process about their care.
In this case, the initiators of the campaign, Sarah Ryan, whose son Connor Sparrowhawk died while he was in a care centre, and Mark Neary, whose autistic son Steven was unlawfully placed in a care unit for a year in 2009, have the help of a lawyer and disability campaigner, Steve Broach, but can anyone start a Private Members’ Bill and what do they need to do to ensure that it becomes law?
Firstly, the individual has to find an MP or a Peer to back them, as Private Members’ can only be introduced by MPs and Lords who are not government ministers.
As with other Public Bills their purpose is to change the law as it applies to the general population. However, only a minority of Private Members’ Bills actually become law.
To introduce a Bill a Member needs to provide its short title, by which it is known, such as the LB Bill in this case, and its long title, which describes briefly what it does.
It can then be introduced in three ways, either by Ballot, the Ten Minute Rule or Presentation. Of these, Ballot Bills have the best chance of becoming law, as they get priority for the limited amount of debating time available.
Under this system, the names of Members applying for a Bill are drawn in an annual ballot held on the second sitting Thursday of a parliamentary session and, normally, the first seven Ballot Bills are most likely to get a day’s debate. However, only 20 MPs are allowed into the Ballot, which is why it can take years to get a Bill through Parliament but, by creating publicity around an issue, the campaigners can often affect legislation indirectly.