Legislative Process

Summary

The legislative process is a critical function of Parliament, involving the drafting, debate, and passage of bills into law.

A bill undergoes several key stages:

  • Notice: Notice must be submitted 48 hours before introduction.
  • Introduction and First Reading: The bill is introduced, and a brief explanation or summary may be provided without debate.
  • Second Reading and Committee Referral: Members debate the bill’s principles. It is then referred to a committee.
  • Committee consideration: The committee studies the bill and invites witnesses. It then conducts a clause-by-clause review, proposes amendments and reports the bill back to the House.
  • Report Stage: Members may propose further amendments and debate at this stage focuses on these changes.
  • Third Reading and Passage: Debate centres on the final version of the bill, followed by a vote.
  • Senate Consideration: The Senate reviews the bill, following a similar process.
  • Royal Assent: Granted by the Governor General, completing the legislative process.

Most bills may be introduced in either House, except for bills which involve spending or which relate to taxation, which must be introduced in the House of Commons. The vast majority of bills are first introduced in the House of Commons. Once royal assent is granted, a bill becomes law, taking effect immediately or on a at a later date.

Introduction

Lawmaking is one of the most significant responsibilities of Parliament. As such, the legislative process takes up a significant portion of Parliament’s time. The legislative stages described here are the culmination of a much longer process that starts with the proposal, formulation and drafting of a bill.

In the case of government bills, the Department of Justice drafts the bill following instructions given by cabinet.

Members of the House of Commons who are not in cabinet and are not parliamentary secretaries may introduce bills that could be considered under Private Members’ Business. A private member’s bill is typically drafted on behalf of a Member of Parliament by a legislative counsel employed by the House.

Types of Bills

There are two main categories of bills: public bills and private bills. Public bills deal with matters of national interest, while the purpose of private bills is to grant special powers, benefits or exemptions to a person or persons, including corporations. Most bills considered by the House of Commons are public bills.

A public bill may be initiated by a minister, in which case it is referred to as a “government bill,” or by a private member, in which case it is called a “private member’s bill.”

Stages in the Legislative Process

In our parliamentary system, a bill must go through several specific stages before it becomes law.

Image of the three options of the legislative process (government bills originating in the House of Commons).
Image of three columns, one for each option of the legislative process. A series of boxes linked by arrows is under each column to show the process of each option. The first option is when a bill is referred to a committee before the second reading. The second option is the traditional one where a bill is referred to a committee after the second reading. The third option is when a committee prepares and brings in a bill.

The first option of the legislative process is to refer a bill to a committee before the second reading. A minister may, after notifying the representatives of the opposition parties, move a motion to this effect. This motion cannot be amended, and debate is limited to five hours. If the motion is adopted, the bill is referred to a committee for consideration. The committee proceeds to clause-by-clause consideration without being restricted by the principle of the bill and may hear witnesses. At the end of its study, the committee reports the bill to the House, with or without amendment. Consideration at the report stage cannot begin before the third sitting day following the presentation of the report. Once adopted at the report stage and read a second time, the bill is set down for a third reading and passage at a subsequent sitting of the House. Debate at this stage focuses on the passage of the bill in its final form. The motion is debatable, amendable and votable.

The second option of the legislative process is to refer a bill to a committee after the second reading. This is the traditional process. After a two-day notice given by a minister, a bill may be introduced and read a first time. There is no debate or vote at this stage. The next stage is the second reading, during which the debate focuses on the general scope and principle of the bill. The motion is debatable, amendable and votable. If the motion is adopted, the bill is referred to a committee for consideration. The committee may hear witnesses and proceeds to clause-by-clause consideration, with the amendments being restricted by the prior adoption of the principle and scope of the bill. At the end of its study, the committee reports the bill to the House, with or without amendment. Report stage consideration cannot begin before the second sitting day following the presentation of the report. Debate at this stage is on amendments and ends with a vote on these amendments and on the motion to approve the bill at the report stage. The third reading is the final stage. The debate focuses on the final form of the bill. The motion is debatable, amendable and votable.

The third option of the legislative process is the preparation of a bill by a committee. Two days after a minister gives notice of a motion instructing a committee to prepare a bill, a 90-minute debate may take place on the motion and it may be amended and voted on. If adopted, it becomes an order of reference to the committee. The selected committee considers it and produces a report. It may also examine a draft bill introduced in the House by the government and report its observations on it. At least two days after the committee presents its report to the House, a minister may move a motion to approve the report, which may be debated and voted on. If adopted, the bill proceeds to the first reading without debate or a vote. The motion for second reading may not be moved before the third sitting day after the first reading. After the second reading, the bill is subjected to the other stages of the traditional process, namely the committee stage, report stage and third reading.

A bill can become law only once the same text has been approved by both Houses of Parliament and has received royal assent.

Most public bills are first introduced in the House of Commons. However, bills may also be introduced in the Senate first, before being studied by the House of Commons.

However, there is a constitutional requirement that bills involving the spending of public funds or relating to taxation be introduced in the House of Commons first. Bills proposing the expenditure of public funds must be accompanied by a royal recommendation, which can only be obtained from the government and presented by a minister. A private member may introduce a public bill containing provisions requiring the expenditure of public funds, provided that a royal recommendation is obtained by a minister before the third reading vote and the passage of the bill.

The Standing Orders of the House of Commons require that each of the three readings of a bill take place on a different day. However, certain bills, particularly appropriation bills, may proceed through multiple stages during a single sitting. In addition, with unanimous consent, the House may allow a bill to proceed through multiple stages during the same sitting.

Notice

A member or minister who intends to introduce a public bill in the House of Commons must first give 48 hours’ written notice to the Clerk of the House. The title of the bill to be introduced is then placed on the Notice Paper.

The day after it appears on the Notice Paper, the title of the bill will appear in the Order Paper, making it ready for introduction in the House.

There are special rules dealing with the introduction of bills that involve the raising or the expenditure of public funds.

Introduction and First Reading of a Bill

Once the notice period has passed, the member or minister seeks leave to introduce their bill when the rubric Introduction of Government Bills or Introduction of Private Members’ Bills is called during Routine Proceedings.

A member normally provides a brief summary of the bill they are introducing. A minister rarely provides any explanation when requesting leave to introduce a bill.

Referral of a Bill to Committee Before Second Reading

A minister may move that a government bill be referred to a committee before second reading. Doing so allows members of a committee to examine the principle of a bill before it is approved by the House of Commons and to propose amendments to alter its scope.

After the committee reports the bill to the House, the next stage is essentially a combination of the report stage and second reading. Members may propose amendments.

Once concurred in at the report stage and read a second time, the bill is ready for the third reading stage.

Second Reading and Referral of a Bill to a Committee

The second reading stage of the legislative process gives members an opportunity to debate the general scope and the principle of the bill. Accordingly, the text of the bill may not be amended during debate at this stage.

However, the motion for second reading may be amended. Three types of amendments are permitted:

  • a three months’ or six months’ hoist, which seeks to postpone consideration of the bill for three or six months (and which adoption is equivalent to defeating the bill by postponing its consideration and removing it from the Order Paper);
  • a reasoned amendment, which requests that the House not give second reading to a bill for a specific reason; or
  • a referral of the subject matter of the bill to a committee.

Consideration in Committee of a Bill

Most bills are referred to the standing committee the mandate of which most closely corresponds to the bill’s subject matter. However, the House may also choose to refer a bill to a legislative committee, a distinct type of committee created solely to undertake the consideration of legislation.

The role of the committee—standing or legislative—is to review the text of the bill and to approve, amend it or recommend against its adoption. It is at this stage that the minister or member sponsoring the bill, as well as witnesses, may be invited to appear before the committee to present their views and answer members’ questions.

Once the witnesses have been heard, the committee proceeds to clause-by-clause study of the bill. It is at this point that each clause is considered separately and members may propose amendments. Once all the clauses of the bill have been considered and adopted with or without amendment, the committee votes on the bill as a whole by putting the question, “Shall the bill carry?”

Once the bill is adopted, the chair asks the committee for leave to report the bill to the House.

Report Stage of a Bill

Following consideration in committee, there is an opportunity for further study of the bill in the House during the report stage. Members may, at this stage, propose motions to amend the text of the bill as it was reported by the committee. The debate focuses on the motions in amendment and not on the bill as a whole.

The Speaker has the power to select and group motions in amendment for debate and will not normally select amendments that were considered or that could have been considered in committee or amendments that were ruled inadmissible by the committee chair. An amendment requiring a royal recommendation may be selected if it is accompanied by the recommendation. At this stage, a motion in amendment aimed at deleting a clause is admissible. The Speaker also determines whether each motion should be voted on separately or as part of a group, and the effect of one vote on the others.

When deliberations at the report stage are concluded, the House proceeds to vote on the motions in amendment according to the grouping and voting arrangements set by the Speaker, after which a motion is put forward to concur in the bill at the report stage in its entirety.

If no motions in amendment are proposed at the report stage:

  • there is no debate;
  • the House decides whether to concur in the bill at the report stage; and
  • the motion for third reading and passage of the bill may be proposed on the same day.

Third Reading and Passage of a Bill

Third reading is the final stage a bill must pass in the House of Commons. It is at this point that members must decide whether the bill will be adopted.

Debate at this stage of the legislative process focuses on the final form of the bill. The amendments that are admissible at this stage are similar to those at the second reading stage. An amendment to recommit the bill to a committee with instructions to reconsider certain clauses is also acceptable.

Once the motion for third reading has been adopted, the Clerk of the House certifies that the bill has passed, and the bill is then sent to the Senate with a message requesting that it consider the bill.

Consideration and Passage by the Senate

The Senate follows a similar legislative process to the one in the House of Commons.

In cases where the Senate adopts a Commons bill without amendment, a message is sent to the House of Commons to inform it that the bill has been passed, and royal assent is normally granted shortly thereafter.

If, however, the Senate amends a bill, it sends a message to the House with the text of the amendments. The House then decides whether it accepts or rejects the amendments proposed by the Senate. When debate takes place on Senate amendments, members must address only the amendments under consideration and not other aspects of the bill. Whether the House agrees with, amends or rejects Senate amendments, a message to that effect is sent to the Senate. When the House amends or rejects Senate amendments, the Senate may accept the decision of the House, reject it or amend what the House has proposed (in practice, the Senate will often accept the decision of the House and will not insist on its amendments). The Senate will inform the House of its decision by message. If an agreement cannot be reached by exchanging messages, the House that has possession of the bill may ask that a conference be held, although this practice is rarely used.

Royal Assent and Coming into Force of a Bill

The ceremony of royal assent is one of the oldest of all parliamentary proceedings and brings together all three constituent parts of Parliament: the Crown, the Senate and the House of Commons. Royal assent is the stage that a bill must pass before officially becoming an act of Parliament. A bill will not be given royal assent unless it has gone through all the stages of the legislative process and has been passed by both Houses in identical form.

Royal assent may be granted in one of two ways: by written declaration or by traditional ceremony.

In the case of a written declaration, the Clerk of the Senate presents the bill to the Governor General, accompanied by a letter confirming its passage by both Houses. The declaration of royal assent is signed in the presence of certain representatives, including officials from the Privy Council Office and, for an appropriation bill, a table officer from the House of Commons. Both Houses are then notified without delay, first the Senate and then the House of Commons. A bill is deemed to have received royal assent as soon as both Houses have been informed.

During a traditional ceremony, which takes place in the Senate, the House of Commons is summoned by the Usher of the Black Rod. Members proceed to the Senate in procession, led by the Speaker. The title of the bill is read in both official languages, after which the Clerk of the Senate announces the granting of royal assent. In the case of an appropriation bill, the Speaker formally presents it and requests royal assent. The Crown’s representative signifies assent, marking the end of the ceremony.

After the ceremony, the House resumes its proceedings and is formally informed that royal assent has been granted for the bill.

Once a bill has been granted royal assent, it becomes law and comes into force either on that date or at a date provided for within the act or specified by an order of the Governor in Council.

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