Trade (Australia and New Zealand) Bill (Second sitting)

James Duddridge Excerpts

Committee stage
Wednesday 12th October 2022 Public Bill Committees

[The Chair]

Thank you. We have a little bit more time than we expected, but we also have quite a few questions to get through, as I am sure colleagues will be pleased to hear.

[The Minister of State, Department for International Trade (James Duddridge)]

Q Will the person giving evidence reflect on her comments encouraging more statutory instruments to be brought forward under the affirmative procedure? I feel that she may have inadvertently misled the Committee. Obviously, it would be legitimate bring forward SIs in that way, but there was an assertion that the negative procedure means no debate. My understanding is that any Member of Parliament can pray against regulations introduced through the negative procedure; that would guarantee debate in a Committee like this. I think I am correct; perhaps she could review her comments and clarify whether she has mis-spoken.

Rosa Crawford: I understand that there can be a debate, but that it is much more difficult for the regulations to be voted down, and that a debate is not guaranteed. There must be an active initiative to pray against the regulations to create that debate. That is much less likely to happen. Such a number of SIs come through that it is quite difficult to trigger a debate on each one and vote against them. Full democratic scrutiny is much harder to achieve under that process than through primary legislation.

[The Chair]

The supplementary point was made, and a supplementary supplementary point is now on the record as well, so I think we will move on.