The King's Speech at a glance

6 hours ago 2

7 minutes ago

Paul SeddonPolitical reporter

King Charles has outlined the government's law-making plans for the coming year in a speech to the House of Lords.

The speech gave an outline of 37 bills minsters want to pass in the next parliamentary session, including eight previously introduced to Parliament.

But the event was overshadowed by the continued leadership speculation that continues to surround Sir Keir Starmer.

Here is a summary of the main points.

The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill will give ministers new powers to fully nationalise British Steel, subject to a public interest test
A European Partnership Bill contains controversial new powers to fast-track legislation to deliver a series of new agreements planned with the EU
A Regulating for Growth Bill will allow for pilot schemes to boost innovation in areas like defence technology and AI-controlled ships
A Competition Reform Bill will aim to speed up reviews by the competition regulator, and the Enhancing Financial Services Bill will aim to reduce compliance burdens on the financial services sector
A Small Business Protections (Late Payments) Bill will increase penalty interest for companies that fail to pay suppliers on time

A Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill will ban the use of leasehold for new flats England and Wales, and cap ground rents at £250 per year
A would exempt newly built social homes in England from Right to Buy for 35 years, and introduce new protections for social tenants who are victims of domestic abuse to stay in their property
Powers to make construction product manufacturers pay towards removing unsafe building cladding are promised in a new Remediation Bill

A Railways and Passenger Benefits Bill will create a new watchdog to enforce passenger rights and consolidate the 14 existing operator websites
A draft Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Bill will introduce a national database of all licensed taxis and hire vehicles, in a bid to improve passenger safety
The financing model used to fund nuclear projects will be extended to new road projects in England through the Highways (Financing) Bill
The Northern Powerhouse Rail Bill, a renamed version of an old HS2 bill, will detail a new proposed rail route from Manchester to Millington, via Manchester Airport
A Civil Aviation Bill will create new powers over take-off and landing slots at airports, in a bid to support airport expansion

A wide-ranging Police Reform Bill will deliver plans to create new, larger forces in England and Wales, and create a new national force to investigate the "most serious crime"
Controversial plans to scale back the use of jury trials in England and Wales are contained in a Courts Modernisation Bill

The Immigration and Asylum Bill will make it easier to revoke refugee status and restrict taxpayer support to asylum seekers

An NHS Modernisation Bill will abolish the arm's length body that runs NHS England, pave the way for patient records to be viewed on the NHS App, and require "mayoral nominees" to sit on local health boards
A draft Conversion Practices Bill, announced in Labour's first King's speech, would deliver a promised ban on measures intending to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity

Energy and the environment

An Energy Independence Bill will introduce new energy efficiency requirements for rented homes, and give ministers new powers to target energy bill support at "low-income and vulnerable households"
The tax charged on the "excess profits" made by electricity generation companies will be increased under a Electricity Generator Levy Bill
Ministers say the process for approving new nuclear energy projects will be streamlined in a Nuclear Regulation Bill
The Clean Water Bill will merge the functions of several existing regulators, including Ofwat, in a bid to end the "fragmented oversight" over the privatised water sector

A Tackling State Threats Bill contains new powers to ban state-linked groups such as Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC)
The Armed Forces Bill, introduced earlier this year, contains new powers making it easier to mobilise former armed forces personnel to prepare for war
In the wake of the 2024 Southport attack, a new National Security Bill will criminalise sharing material that "glorifies, trivialises, or normalises" serious violence
The government's much-amended Northern Ireland Troubles Bill, to create a new commission to investigate Troubles-related killings, also featured

Powers to deliver a new voluntary digital ID scheme to access public services are contained in a Digital Access to Services Bill
A Cyber Security and Resilience Bill will bring data centres into scope of the UK's cyber security reporting regime

Plans to restrict foreign political donations and lower the voting age to 16 are contained in a Representation of the People Bill announced earlier this year
The Public Office (Accountability) Bill, known as the Hillsborough Law, is an existing bill to create a new duty of candour for public officials
New powers to removing peerages from members of the House of Lords are contained in a new Removal of Peerages Bill
A Sovereign Grant Bill will enable government funding for the monarch's official duties to be reduced after a renovation of Buckingham Palace ends next year

Plans to overhaul the provision of special needs provision in England's schools are contained in a new Education for All Bill
A draft Ticket Tout Ban Bill will cap service fees charged by resale platforms and make it illegal to resell tickets for live events at more than face value
The Sporting Events Bill contains a raft of powers to support the delivery of the Euro 2028 men's football tournament
An Overnight Visitor Levy Bill will give local mayors in England powers to levy "tourist taxes" on overnight stays, bringing them into line with local leaders in Wales and Scotland

Legislation to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius has been shelved after opposition from US President Donald Trump
A bill to reform welfare did not feature, although the King said ministers would "respond" to a review of the system led by Social Security Minister Stephen Timms due in the autumn
A private member's bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales ran out of time in the previous session amid opposition in the Lords - the government has not given time for a new bill, although supporters may hope to bring one back.