Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, if she will take steps to increase the amount of parliamentary time given to debate Private Members' Bills in the 2023-24 parliamentary session.

The Standing Orders provide for thirteen sitting Fridays per session. The House can agree, on a Government motion, to sit on additional Fridays when required. This is usually appropriate when the length of a session has been extended.

With the support of the Government, 24 Private Members’ Bills were passed in the last session, with only one additional Friday allocated. This is more than the 2021-22 session, which saw 13 Private Members’ Bills reach Royal Assent in thirteen sitting Fridays. This clearly demonstrates that sufficient support from across the House is more important in the successful passage of Private Members’ Bills than additional parliamentary time.