Parliament Act 1911 facts for kids
| Act of Parliament | |
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| Long title | An Act to make provision with respect to the powers of the House of Lords in relation to those of the House of Commons, and to limit the duration of Parliament. |
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| Citation | 1 & 2 Geo. 5. c. 13 |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 18 August 1911 |
| Commencement | 18 August 1911 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by | Parliament Act 1949 |
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Status: Amended
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| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
The Parliament Act 1911 was an important law passed in the United Kingdom. It changed how the two parts of the UK Parliament, the House of Commons and the House of Lords, work together. This law made the House of Commons much more powerful.
Before this Act, the House of Lords could stop new laws from being passed. This caused problems, especially when the Lords disagreed with the elected House of Commons. The Act was passed after a big disagreement about a government budget in 1909, known as the "People's Budget". The House of Lords tried to block it.
The Parliament Act 1911 took away the Lords' power to completely stop money laws. It also limited their power to delay other laws to just two years. Later, the Parliament Act 1949 reduced this delay to one year. The 1911 Act also shortened the maximum time a Parliament could last from seven years to five years.
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Why the Parliament Act 1911 Was Needed
Before 1911, there was no easy way to fix disagreements between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The only real solution was for the King or Queen to create many new members (called "peers") for the House of Lords. This would change the votes in the Lords.
Early Disagreements and Solutions
For example, in 1713, Queen Anne created twelve new peers to pass a treaty. In 1832, King William IV threatened to create 80 new peers to help pass a major reform law. These events created an unwritten rule: the Lords usually gave in when the public clearly supported the House of Commons.
However, the Lords still had the power to demand that the public's support be shown, often by forcing a new election.
Money Bills and the Lords' Power
It was generally understood that the House of Lords could not change "money bills." These are laws about taxes and government spending. Only the House of Commons, whose members are elected by the people, had the right to decide on these matters.
But the Lords could still reject money bills completely. In 1860, all money bills were combined into one big budget. This made it harder for the Lords to reject just one part. Rejecting the whole budget seemed like a very big step.
The "People's Budget" Conflict
By the early 1900s, the House of Lords had a large majority of members from the Conservative Party. The Liberal Party, which was in power, wanted to pass new laws to help people with welfare reforms. This often led to clashes with the Lords.
Between 1906 and 1909, the Lords either weakened or rejected several important laws. For instance, an education bill in 1906 was changed so much by the Lords that the Commons dropped it.
In 1909, the Lords took a big step. They rejected the government's budget, known as the "People's Budget." This budget was put forward by David Lloyd George. The Lords voted against it by a large margin. The House of Commons said this was "a breach of the constitution." The Lords wanted the Commons to prove that the public truly supported the budget by holding a new election.
The Liberal government did hold a new election in January 1910. The Liberals lost some seats but still had a majority with the help of Irish and Labour Party members. After this election, the Lords finally passed the "People's Budget."
How the Act Was Passed
Even after the budget passed, the government wanted to prevent similar problems in the future. They proposed the Parliament Act to limit the Lords' power. This new law had strong support from Irish politicians who wanted "Home Rule" (self-government) for Ireland. They knew the Lords might block an Irish Home Rule bill.
Discussions and Deadlock
Leaders from the Liberal government and the Conservative opposition held many meetings. They tried to find a compromise. They agreed on some things, like how to handle money bills. They also thought about having joint meetings of both Houses to solve big disagreements.
However, the main sticking point was Irish Home Rule. The Conservatives wanted to make sure that a Home Rule law could not be passed using the new Parliament Act rules. The Liberals disagreed. After many meetings, the talks failed in November 1910.
The King's Role and the Final Vote
The government then threatened to call another election if the Parliament Act wasn't passed. They followed through, and a second election was held in December 1910. The results were similar to the January election.
The King at the time, George V, was asked if he would agree to create many new Liberal peers if the Lords continued to block the bill. The King said he would, but only if the Lords rejected the bill at least once more.
The House of Lords did reject some parts of the bill. So, the Prime Minister, H. H. Asquith, announced the King's plan to create new peers. This threat was enough. Many Lords decided to not vote or voted for the bill to avoid having hundreds of new peers join their ranks.
The Parliament Act was finally passed by the House of Lords on 11 August 1911.
What the Act Changed
The Parliament Act 1911 changed the relationship between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. It did not change who could be a member of the House of Lords, but it changed what they could do.
Money Bills: No More Veto
The Act meant the Lords could only delay "money bills" for one month. This effectively ended their power to stop these bills. A "money bill" was clearly defined as a public bill dealing only with taxes, government spending, or loans.
The Speaker of the House of Commons (the person in charge of debates in the Commons) had to confirm if a bill was a money bill. This was done with a special "Speaker's certificate."
Other Laws: Limited Delay
For other public laws, the Lords could no longer completely stop them. Instead, they could only delay them for a maximum of two years. This meant that if a law was introduced late in a Parliament's term, it could still be delayed until after the next election.
The Act also made sure that any bill passed without the Lords' full agreement had to be exactly the same bill that had been rejected twice before.
Parliament's Length: Five Years
The Act also changed how long a Parliament could last. Before 1911, a Parliament could last up to seven years. The Parliament Act 1911 changed this to a maximum of five years. This five-year limit was seen as a way to balance the new powers given to the House of Commons.
In practice, elections were usually called earlier by the Prime Minister. This five-year limit was in place until 2011, when a new law, the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, set fixed election dates. However, that Act was later repealed in 2022, returning to the previous system where the Prime Minister could ask the monarch to call an election.
Impact of the Act
The Parliament Act 1911 had a lasting impact on British politics.
Continued Influence of the Lords
Even though the Lords lost their veto power over money bills, they still suggested changes to them. Sometimes, the House of Commons even accepted these changes. The Lords' power to delay other laws, even for a limited time, remained an important way for them to influence new laws.
Irish Home Rule
The Act was very important for the Government of Ireland Act 1914. This law, which would have given Ireland more self-government, was strongly opposed by some groups, especially Protestants in Ulster. Before the 1911 Act, the Lords could have stopped it completely. With the new Act, the Lords could only delay it. However, the Irish Home Rule Act never actually came into force because World War I started.
Legality of the Act
The laws passed using the Parliament Act are still considered proper laws. This was confirmed in a very important court case called Jackson v Attorney General. In this case, some people questioned if the Parliament Act 1949 (which further reduced the Lords' delaying power) was legal. They argued that the 1911 Act only gave the Commons "delegated power," meaning the Commons couldn't then use that power to give themselves even more power without the Lords' agreement.
However, the highest court ruled that the 1911 Act didn't just give power to the Commons. Instead, it changed how Parliament as a whole makes laws by limiting the Lords' ability to reject them. So, the 1949 Act was passed legally. This ruling also suggests that the House of Commons could potentially use the Parliament Act to abolish the House of Lords entirely, though this was not directly decided.
See also
- List of Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom enacted without the House of Lords' consent
