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A bill is carried forward through all the stages of the legislative process “by a long chain of standardized motions” which must be adopted by the House before the bill becomes law.[129] It is these motions, and not the bill, that are the subject of the debates and decisions of the House. The stages to which the motions correspond “constitute a simple and logical process in which each stage transcends the one immediately before it, so that although the basic motions—that the bill be read a first (second or third) time—appear the same, and seem repetitious, they have very different meanings”.[130] Moreover, the House does not commit itself conclusively to a bill until the final stage, when it takes a decision on whether or not the bill should receive final passage.[131] The Standing Orders of the House require that every bill receive three readings, on different days, before being passed.[132] The practice of giving every bill three separate readings derives from an ancient parliamentary practice which originated in the United Kingdom.[133] At that time, when the technology was not yet available to reproduce large numbers of copies at low cost, bills were introduced in handwritten form, one copy at a time. In order for Members to discern the content of the bill, the Clerk read it to them; thus, the idea of “reading” the bill was originally taken literally.[134] Today, while a bill is no longer read aloud, the readings have remained as formalities. When the Speaker declares that the motion for first reading has passed, a clerk at the Table rises and announces “First reading of this bill”, thus signifying that the Order of the House has been obeyed. This scenario is repeated when the House has ordered a second and then a third reading of the bill. A certification of reading must be affixed to every bill immediately after the motion for each of the three readings is adopted. The Clerk of the House is responsible for certifying each reading, and entering the date of passage at the foot of the bill.[135] A bill remains in the custody of the Clerk throughout the stages of consideration. No substantive alteration to the bill is permitted without the express authority of the House or of a committee, in the form of an amendment. The original bills, certified by the Clerk, form part of the official records of the House.[136] All bills must pass through the same stages of the legislative process, but they do not necessarily follow exactly the same route. Since the House adopted new rules to make the legislative process more flexible,[137] three avenues have existed for the adoption of legislation (see Figure 16.1):
Regardless of the avenue taken, the bill will have to be carried through report stage, be read a third time and be sent to the Senate for consideration and passage before receiving Royal Assent. At the start of a new session, a government bill may, if it is identical to a bill introduced in the preceding session, be reinstated at the stage it had reached at the time of prorogation.[138] This may be accomplished by passing a motion to that effect.[139] Private Members’ bills, on the other hand, are not affected by prorogation and do not, therefore, require reinstatement at the beginning of a new session. A separate procedure is set out for the reinstatement of Senate bills.[140] On urgent or extraordinary occasions, if the House so decides, a bill may receive two or three readings on the same day, or be advanced two or more stages in one day.[141] This provision of the Standing Orders applies only to the reading stages.[142] It is up to the House itself, and not to the Chair, to determine whether the matter is sufficiently urgent.[143] The following are the stages that a bill must pass through before becoming law:
A bill that is introduced in the Senate must pass through essentially the same stages, except that it is considered first in the Senate and subsequently in the House of Commons.[144] Most bills may be introduced in either House, except for bills which involve spending or relate to taxation, which must be introduced in the House of Commons.
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