Queen's Speech: Ones to Watch

Chris Fletcher, Deputy Chief Executive at the Chamber

Earlier today the Queen delivered the agenda for the Government’s legislative programme. Director of Policy at the Chamber, Chris Fletcher has chosen a couple of the Bills announced to keep an eye on:

The National Insurance Contributions Bill will enable the Employment Allowance – announced in the Budget - to come into law giving businesses a £2,000 cut in employer NICs.

There are also two Bills relating to High Speed 2. The first, High Speed Rail (Preparation) Bill, opens up the funding streams to allow development work to start on the proposed routes. The ‘Paving’ Bill is the first step in not only bringing the scheme to life, but also potentially reducing the timescale. The second Bill is the HS2 Hybrid Bill which will allow the Government to enact compulsory purchase orders to buy land to then get the network built.

In addition to the above, the Energy Bill continues into its second session in Parliament, whilst the Intellectual Property Bill is designed to simplify patent-protection laws and means a single patent is valid in most EU countries.

A Deregulation Bill was also announced which is designed to help Government lay out how and where cuts to excessive red tape can be made. A fundamental of this is that one of the stated benefits of cutting legislation will be to facilitate growth.

As the next election is just two years away this programme of legislation, coupled with the Spending Review in June, will set many people’s perceptions of what the Government has achieved. With this Autumn’s conferences already pitched as being part of the manifesto formation process, the countdown to Spring 2015 has now started.