How a bill becomes law, including debate in the House of Commons and the House of Lords, scrutiny by committees, and royal assent.

What this dot point is asking

Edexcel wants you to explain how a bill becomes a law, including debate in the Commons and the Lords, scrutiny by committees, and royal assent. This Theme B topic (Paper 1 Section B) is tested through "Explain" tasks on the law-making process and through "Examine" tasks on why the process has so many stages. The examiner rewards the stages in roughly the right order, the role of committee scrutiny and amendment, the need for both Houses to agree, and above all the fact that royal assent is required before a bill becomes an Act of Parliament.

What a bill is

Most bills are introduced by the government to put its programme into law, though backbench MPs and peers can also introduce bills. A bill sets out the proposed change in detail. Because a law binds everyone and is hard to undo, Parliament does not simply vote a proposal through; it subjects it to a structured process of debate, examination and amendment in both Houses. The point of this process is to test the proposal thoroughly before it becomes binding law, and to give MPs, peers and the public a chance to challenge and improve it. Edexcel expects you to know that a bill is only a proposal until it has completed these stages and received royal assent.

Debate and scrutiny in both Houses

The process gives a proposal repeated examination. In its first House, the bill is introduced and debated at a series of readings, and at committee stage a small group of MPs or peers goes through it in detail, suggesting amendments. The House then considers those changes and votes. The bill is then sent to the other House, which repeats the stages and may propose further amendments. If the two Houses disagree, the bill passes between them until they agree the text (though the Commons, as the elected House, ultimately prevails). This stage-by-stage scrutiny is a key check on government power, because it allows the proposal to be improved, challenged or, in the Commons, defeated before it becomes law.

Royal assent and becoming an Act

Royal assent is the final step. After both Houses have agreed the bill, it is sent to the monarch, who by convention always gives assent. This formal approval turns the bill into an Act of Parliament, which then comes into force (sometimes immediately, sometimes on a later date set out in the Act). Royal assent is the single fact markers most want to see in answers on how a law is made, so it must be stated clearly and placed at the end of the process. Knowing the full chain, bill, readings and committee scrutiny in both Houses, agreement, royal assent, Act, lets you answer both "Explain" and "Examine" questions on law-making.