ment of minority rights, he has power to limit unreasonable obstruction and his rulings on points of order cannot be challenged at the time. The Speaker has the right to allow or disallow a closure motion (i.e. a motion to curtail or end discussion so that the matter may be put to the vote), to check irrelevance in debate, and to refuse to admit delaying tactics. In cases of grave and continuous disorder, he may even adjourn the House or suspend the sitting.
Voting in the House of Commons is carried out under the direction of the Speaker, and it is his duty to pronounce the final result. If an equal number of votes is cast, the Speaker must give the decisive vote; by regular practice he does this in such a way as to avoid change and leave the question to be debated on another occasion.
In addition to his duties in debate, the Speaker has the responsibility of deciding what is a Money Bill (a Bill dealing only with national taxation and finance, see p. 25); and who, in case of doubt, is the Leader of the Opposition. He is also responsible for such extraneous matters as the decision whether a prima facie case has been made against persons accused of breach of privilege; the issue of warrants for elections to fill vacancies in the House; and the appointment of the chairmen of the Standing Committees.
All proceedings of either House (with the exception of secret sessions) are public, and a verbatim record is published daily in Hansard.
The main functions of Parliament today are (a) to make laws regulating the life of the community, (b) to take formal action, cast in legislative form, to make available finance for the needs of the community and to appropriate the funds necessary for the services of the State, and (c) to criticize and control the Government (see pp. 25-26). Although the making and ratification of international treaties and agreements is a royal prerogative (see p. 17) exercised on the advice of the Government, which strictly speaking is under no obligation to obtain Parliamentary approval, it is customary for Parliament to be consulted before ratification of those agreements requiring it. These are, in practice, of two types: treaties which could not be implemented without legislation, which Parliament must be asked to pass before ratification can take place; and treaties of such political importance that the Government feels obliged, as a political though not as a legal necessity, to consult Parliament by arranging a debate on the matter before becoming committed.
In the past, legislation was initiated from both sides of the House; but in present-day practice almost all Bills are brought forward by the Government in power as a result of policy decisions taken in the Cabinet at the instigation of those Government Departments which will be responsible for their administration when the Bills become law. The chief exceptions are Private Bills, which relate solely to some matter of individual, corporate or local interest, and Private Members’ Bills, which are Public Bills introduced by members on their own initiative on certain days set aside expressly for the purpose.
Bills may be introduced in either House, unless they deal with finance or representation, when they are always introduced in the Commons. As a rule, however, no Bills likely to raise much political controversy are introduced in the Lords, as the House of Commons is considered a more suitable place of origin for measures of that kind.
The process of passing a Public Bill is the same in the House of Lords as in the House of Commons: the Bill receives a formal First Reading on introduction; it is then printed; and after a period of time (which varies between one and several weeks depending on the type of Bill, subject matter, etc.) it may be given a Second Reading as the result of a debate on its general merits or principles. It is then referred either to one of the Standing
Committees appointed for the purpose by the Committee of Selection,[1] or, in the case of
- ↑ A body of 11 members nominated at the beginning of every session by the House in proportion to party strength in the Commons.
