Government undertakes to provide better explanations of proposed laws in response to criticisms by Lords committee

The Government has agreed to ensure ministers understand that providing timely and good quality explanatory documents with legislation is "vital in facilitating parliamentary scrutiny", following two years of sustained criticism from the House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.

It has also agreed to establish a short-term steering group on secondary legislation to identify ways to stimulate culture change across departments and champion best practice, with a commitment to drawing this issue to the attention of ministers at a meeting in September.

The commitments come in response to a report from the Committee published in May 2023, which examined the 700 statutory instruments laid by government departments in the first 12 months of Parliament's session 2022-23.

The report stated that "too often we have had to ask basic questions about the rationale for a policy or its intended effects".

It went on to urge departments to take rapid action to strengthen their quality assurance systems.

The report was the fourth in a post-pandemic series of reports that have been critical of the standard of information being provided in support of the secondary legislation the Government has laid before Parliament.

Despite the May report's findings, the Committee noted that it had since found "yet further poor" Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) attached to secondary legislation introduced by the Government.

Responding to the May report, the Government said it recognised that timely and good quality supporting documents "are vital in facilitating parliamentary scrutiny" and includes a commitment to using "every opportunity to reinforce their importance".

It has also promised to address the matter with departments, including by providing refreshed training.

The Committee's chair, Lord Hunt of Wirral, said the Government had undertaken to hold a meeting to draw the Committee's concerns directly to the attention of the ministers who sign off legislation.

"This is a very welcome and significant development," he said. 

Lord Hunt added: "Standards fell during the pandemic for understandable reasons but have so far failed to return to normal: our weekly reports on the Government's regulations continue to expose examples of poor quality or missing information.

"Proper explanation of its legislation is essential to maintain a government's accountability in a democratic society. This response undertakes to establish a short-term steering group on secondary legislation to identify ways to stimulate culture change across departments. We welcome the Government's plan to engage the attention of senior officials and Ministers in departments and look forward to significant improvements in the quality of explanations."

The Committee continues to warn that explanatory information for secondary legislation continues to be absent in some cases, highlighting the Criminal Justice (Specified Class A Drugs) Order 2023 (SI 2023/784).

In this case, when the Order was laid in July, the Home Office did not provide any information on the number of people affected, the costs of additional treatment and whether treatment services have the capacity to cope with the demand, the Committee found.

Commenting on this, Lord Hunt added: "The Government is now 'talking the talk' about providing explanatory material, but it is up to departments to 'walk the walk'. Currently, some are not. Our Committee will be making sure that they do."

Adam Carey