§ Lord Rentonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Which of the 87 recommendations of the Committee on the Preparation of Legislation (Cmnd. 6053) involving a change have not yet been implemented; which of them it is still intended to implement: and whether they will publish in the Official Report their reasons for not implementing those recommendations which it is not intended to implement.
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§ The Lord President of the Council (Viscount Whitelaw)The majority of the recommendations made in this report, published in 1975, dealt with detailed matters of drafting practice. The view taken by successive Administrations has been that, while it is recognised that these recommendations constitute a valuable summary of the best drafting practice, parliamentary draftsmen should retain their discretion in applying them to the circumstances of particular legislation. The committee's recommendations are, however, taken fully into account in the drafting of all new Government legislation.
With regard to the recommendations in the report relating to consolidation legislation (recommendations 46 to 53), I would refer to the references made by the Lord Chancellor to recent progress in the process of consolidation during the debate on my noble friend's Motion on 15th December 1982.
Certain of the committee's recommendations involving questions of parliamentary procedure were subsequently considered by the House of Commons Select Committee on Procedure(Session 1977–78), and were included within the scope of that committee's first report.