On the 8th of May the Queen will read out the list of Government bills to be introduced in the next Parliament. The Queen’s Speech is one of the big set piece Parliamentary occasions. With fixed-term parliaments there is now much more clarity about when elections and the Speech will take place. They aren’t fixed points in a calendar but you can plan around them.
Too many people underestimate the importance of the Queen’s Speech – they see it as just a list of Bills. But considered properly it can be a valuable launch pad for constructive and effective engagement.
Of course, nothing in the Speech should come as a surprise. If engagement has already taken place then it will just reaffirm what you already know. A large part is also trailed widely in advance in the media. Indeed, at the latter end of the last Labour government the contents were even consulted on (the programme being released around six months before).
There are though important lobbying considerations around the Queen’s Speech.
- The detail – unfortunately, very little detail is provided alongside the Speech. There will be some accompanying documents and these should be considered. It is always worth having a thorough double check of these documents and looking for Bills that may not, at first glance, appear directly relevant. Very often the devil is in the detail and Bills can potentially contain measures which may need attention or support.
- The opportunities – you should be looking to make the most of the opportunities presented by the Speech. Some of the Bills mentioned will be introduced almost immediately; others won’t come until much later in the session. That means that the proposed legislation will be in various states of readiness, some being more embryonic that others. This makes engagement with the relevant government department an absolute priority.
- Read the Speech – not all the Bills make the headlines so it is important to actually go through the Speech and consider the contents. Reading the Speech in detail also enables you to more fully understand both government priorities and those of the individual departments. The latter, in particular, can be lost in the media coverage.
- Be ready – it is critical that you are capable of moving quickly. Be ready with reaction – support, an expression of opposition to plans or a call for more engagement in the detail of the proposals. It can set the tone for the lobbying work going forward.
- Follow-up – there is a debate in Parliament on the Queen’s Speech once it has been delivered. The debate is broken down into subject areas and you should not miss the opportunity to brief Parliamentarians so that they can take part in the relevant debates. Again, this helps to highlight issues at the outset and can be used as a basis for further work.
The Bills announced should not come as any surprise if you are already plugged into policy making. But even then the Queen’s Speech should not be ignored. There may be action to take but without proper analysis any opportunities will be lost.
The real lesson of the Queen’s Speech is that early and frequent engagement with government is the only real solution.