In my last law blog post, we asked what secondary legislation is. In this one, we will be looking at some of the advantages of this method of law-making and what benefits it brings for Parliament and the public. We will then consider the disadvantages of secondary legislation in a later blog post. Before we start, we will quickly review what secondary legislation is and how it is made.
What is Secondary Legislation?
Secondary legislation is legislation that is delegated to ministers or others to make, rather than the whole of the UK Parliament. It is sometimes also known as delegated or subordinate legislation and usually consists of Statutory Instruments (SIs). Secondary legislation is mostly used for detailed and technical areas of law, adding to primary legislation to expand on these mains Acts.
To make secondary legislation, there will be an Act delegating powers to the minister or another public body. This Act delegating powers is known as the parent or enabling Act and sets out what the piece of secondary legislation will cover and what limits there are on the powers delegated. The minister or public body will then draft the secondary legislation in accordance with the parent Act. Once done, it will be subject to a review process by Parliament, which may only require there to be no objections (negative review procedure).
What are the Benefits?
Uses Less Parliament Time
One key advantage of secondary legislation, and one of the main reasons for using it, is that it is much less demanding on Parliament’s time. Thousands of SIs are made every year and Parliament needs to devote its time to many other areas of law and discussion too. It simply doesn’t have enough time to make all of the legislation required, so some has to be delegated.
The more that is passed down to ministers to make, the less strain is put on Parliament’s schedule. This leaves Parliament with more time available to deal with their other duties, especially those where it is essential that the whole of Parliament is involved. Delegating legislation helps to keep the law-making process smooth and efficient.
Expertise
Another advantage of secondary legislation is the knowledge brought by ministers or other bodies. They will all have particular areas that are theirs, where they have a lot of technical expertise. Parliament can’t possibly be an expert in every topic that they make legislation about, so law made by them may not go into the necessary details.
However, secondary legislation is generally assigned to someone with a lot of knowledge and experience in the area concerned. They will also have more time available to research and check things, leading to more accurate legislation. This drafting process, with someone who is familiar with all of the background and current issues, should lead to legislation that responds to what is needed and resolves problems better.
Secondary legislation covering these more specific issues leaves Parliament free to deal with broader policies. This lets them address the issues which affect the entire country. As Parliament is a democratically elected body, it makes sense for them to be able to resolve problems that affect everyone.
Local Knowledge
This point is closely linked to the above one about expertise, but specifically concerns secondary legislation made by local authorities, such as bylaws. Local councils have a better understanding of what issues are affecting the area and what could be done to resolve them, whereas Parliament does not have this knowledge.
In addition, local councils will know what the existing local laws are. It doesn’t make sense for the whole of Parliament to legislate on things that only affect one small area. Local authorities are elected by the local people, so this is still democratic.
More Flexible
Secondary legislation is also more flexible, which means it can adapt to change better. Acts of Parliament need to be very rigid, so there is no room for flexibility. It is easier to have minor distinctions made in secondary legislation, especially with the greater expertise they receive.
In addition, an Act of Parliament can only be amended or revoked completely by another Act of Parliament, which is a slow process. Secondary legislation can just be removed if it turns out to be creating problems or not solving the problem it was supposed to fix.
Emergencies
Finally, secondary legislation is able to deal with emergencies more efficiently than Parliament can. It is a lot quicker and can instantly be assigned to someone with the necessary expertise in the topic, rather than needing to go through the full Parliamentary system of debate. The secondary legislation can then be changed or removed if necessary once the immediate emergency is dealt with.
Wrapping Up
I hope that this helps you understand the benefits of secondary legislation and why it is used. In my next blog post, we will be looking at some of the disadvantages, so come back in two weeks to read about them!
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