QUEEN’S SPEECH 2014
On 4 June 2014 the Queen set out the government’s legislative agenda for the year ahead with the aim of securing the recovery of our country. We want a Britain that pays its way in the world, has a stronger, more competitive economy and gives hardworking people peace of mind for the future. The bills announced were:
Private Pensions Bill - to allow for innovation in the pensions market to give greater control to employees.
Pensions Tax Bill - to give those who have saved discretion over the use of their retirement funds.
Infrastructure Bill - to bolster investment in infrastructure and reform planning law to improve economic competitiveness.
Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill - to help make the United Kingdom the most attractive place to start, finance and grow a business.
Childcare Payments Bill - to help working families with childcare costs.
Serious Crime Bill - to tackle child neglect, disrupt serious organised crime and strengthen powers to seize the proceeds of crime. Serious and organised crime costs taxpayers at least £24 billion a year; we will ensure that those involved are properly punished.
Modern Slavery Bill - to strengthen the powers to prevent modern slavery and human trafficking whilst improving support for victims of such crimes.
Armed Forces (Service Complaints and Financial Assistance) Bill - to improve the complaints system in the Armed Forces through the creation of an ombudsman.
Social Action, Responsibility and Heroism Bill - to provide that where a person acts heroically, responsibly or for the benefit of others, this will be taken into account by the courts.
National Insurance Contributions Bill - to tackle avoidance of contributions and to simplify their collection from the self-employed.
Recall of Members of Parliament Bill - to introduce a mechanism for the recall of Members of Parliament. If MPs are in serious breach of standards and judged to be so, they should not have to wait for a general election to receive the verdict of their constituents.