Following Labour’s landslide election victory, King Charles will deliver the King’s Speech as part of the State Opening of Parliament this week. The speech will outline the new government’s priorities for the months ahead.
The speech, the first King’s Speech under a Labour government since 1950, is expected to include more than 35 new bills ranging from housebuilding to green energy to constitutional reform. The speech is expected at around 11.25am on Wednesday, with debate from 2.30pm.
The government said over the weekend that it “will use its mandate for change to put economic growth at the heart of its legislative agenda”.
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It said that the package of bills “will focus on growing the economy through turbocharging building of houses and infrastructure, better transport, more jobs and securing clean energy” and that new legislation “will also help to create wealth in every community and hand the power back to local leaders”.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “Our work is urgent. There is no time to waste. We are hitting the ground running by bringing forward the laws we will need to rebuild our country for the long term – and our ambitious, fully-costed agenda is the downpayment on that change.
“From energy, to planning, to unbreakable fiscal rules, my government is serious about delivering the stability that is going to turbocharge growth that will create wealth in every corner of the UK.
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“The task of national renewal will not be easy, and this is just the downpayment on our plans for the next five years, but the legislation set out at the King’s Speech will build on the momentum of our first days in office and make a difference to the lives of working people.”
LabourList looks at what is confirmed and expected from the speech and the bills set to be included in it.
Enforcing spending rules
The government said over the weekend the speech will include a bill “to enforce tough new spending rules, designed to ensure economic growth, while avoiding the chaos which left families with spiralling bills and wreaked misery on people’s lives”.
It said the new bill will strengthen the role of the Office for Budget Responsibility, meaning “significant fiscal announcements” must be “properly scrutinised”, to “ensure nobody can play fast and loose with the public finances ever again”.
National wealth fund
The government said the speech will “build on the momentum of the government’s first week in office”, with legislation to enact announcements made in the first week “show[ing] that the government is getting on with the job”.
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Its press release said this will include plans for a new national wealth fund, in which the party has said it would invest £7.3bn to be put towards the “new industries of the future”.
Border security command
The government said the speech will also include legislation related to its planned border security command, which Labour said earlier this year will bring together key agencies and work cross-border with international agencies to tackle people-smuggling gangs.
The Home Office announced last week that “rapid recruitment for an exceptional leader” is underway, with the recruit “expected to take up their post in the coming weeks”.
It also said early legislation is being prepared to introduce new counter terror-style powers and stronger measures to tackle organised immigration crime.
Constitutional change
Labour’s first bills will include substantial constitutional change, according to some reports, including manifesto commitments to reform the House of Lords. Compulsory retirement of peers at the age of 80 and the removal of hereditary peers is expected to feature in the King’s Speech.
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The Guardian also reports that automatic voter registration and Labour’s commitment to extend the franchise to 16- and 17-year-olds will also be included in the speech.
Proposals to redraw the nation’s constituencies based on population, not just registered voters, could also be included.
A “take back control” bill is also expected, which would devolve more powers over energy, transport and planning to local communities.
Housebuilding
A key tenet of Labour’s pitch to the electorate was its commitment to build 1.5 million new homes, so the King’s Speech is expected to include a bill outlining how the government will achieve this goal. This will almost certainly include plans to overhaul the planning system.
Energy
A bill creating the new publicly-owned GB Energy is likely to be among those to be included in the King’s Speech, which will help the government reach its target of making the electricity system based on clean energy by the start of the next decade.
The government said the speech will include legislation to enact plans for a new mission control tasked with “turbocharging” the UK to clean power by 2030.
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It said last week the mission control will be “the first of its kind in government, with a relentless focus on accelerating the transition away from volatile fossil fuel markets to clean, homegrown power”.
It said the mission control will bring together a team of industry experts and officials to “troubleshoot, negotiate and clear the way for energy projects”.
Transport
A bill to enshrine Labour’s commitment to nationalise the railways into law is expected, which would create a new public body to run services once private contracts expire.
Workers’ rights
Labour’s landmark workers’ rights bill, known as the New Deal for Working People, is expected to have legislation introduced within the new government’s first 100 days.
The measures set to be implemented include a ban on zero-hours contracts, a crackdown on fire and rehire and granting greater workers’ rights from day one of starting a new job.
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