Online access to all UK Parliament publications

UK Parliament Publications Online

Public Information Online provides searchable online access to UK Parliament publications from both the House of Commons and House of Lords, including parliamentary papers, Bills, Acts, Explanatory Notes, Statutory Instruments and Hansard.

The collection includes parliamentary and legislative publications from across the UK Parliament, together with supporting documents produced during the legislative process. Historical coverage includes House of Commons Papers, House of Lords Papers, Command Papers, Hansard and other parliamentary publications, making PIO a valuable resource for legal, academic, parliamentary and government research.

House of Commons Papers
House of Lords Papers
House of Commons Public Bills and House of Lords Public Bills
House of Commons Explanatory Notes and House of Lords Explanatory Notes
Command Papers
Public Bill Committee Papers
Acts of Parliament
Acts of Parliament Explanatory Notes
Draft Statutory Instruments and Statutory Instruments
House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard

House of Commons Papers (from 2006/07)
House of Commons Papers are papers produced as a result of the work of the House of Commons and its committees, or papers required for the work of the House. They form a distinct series within the parliamentary papers collection.

Each House of Commons Paper is identified by a number with the prefix HC and the parliamentary session in which it was published. Numbers restart at 1 for each session, so a paper should be identified by both its number and session, for example HC 507 2006-07.

Select Committee Papers
Select Committee Papers include reports produced by House of Commons Select Committees, evidence taken by committees and Minutes of Proceedings. Government responses to Select Committee reports may be published as House of Commons Papers, Command Papers or departmental publications.

Minutes of Proceedings of Public Bill Committees
Public Bill Committees examine the details of Bills during the committee stage. Their Minutes of Proceedings record matters such as amendments considered, divisions and attendance. Public Bill Committees were known as Standing Committees until November 2006.

Returns to Addresses by the House
Returns to Addresses provide information or documents requested by the House of Commons. They may include reports, statistics or other information supplied by the Government.

Estimates and Appropriation Accounts
These include Supply Estimates, Supplementary and Revised Estimates and Appropriation Accounts presented to the House of Commons. Certain financial statements and reports, including National Audit Office reports, may also be published as House of Commons Papers.

Annual Reports and Accounts
Certain public bodies are required by statute to present their annual reports and accounts to Parliament. These publications may appear in the House of Commons Papers series.

House Returns
House Returns summarise the work of the House of Commons during a parliamentary session. They are published as a Sessional Return for each session.

Other House of Commons Papers
Other papers include publications that do not fall into a specific category, such as the Register of Members' Interests and Standing Orders for public and private business.

House of Lords Papers (from 1901)
House of Lords Papers are papers produced as a result of the work of the House of Lords and its committees, or papers required for the work of the House. They form a distinct series within the parliamentary papers collection.

Each House of Lords Paper is identified by a number with the prefix HL and the parliamentary session in which it was published. Numbers restart at 1 for each session, so a paper should be identified by both its number and session, for example HL 105 2006-07.

Most House of Lords Papers originate from Select Committees and include committee reports and evidence. Other papers include the Register of Members' Interests and Standing Orders.

House of Commons Bills and House of Lords Bills (from 1919 and 1901 respectively)
Public Bills propose changes to the law that apply generally to the population. Government ministers introduce the majority of Public Bills, while those introduced by MPs or Members of the House of Lords who are not government ministers are known as Private Members' Bills.

Introduction of Public Bills
Public Bills may be introduced in either the House of Commons or the House of Lords and normally pass through a series of stages in both Houses before they can become law. Bills concerned primarily with taxation or public expenditure must begin in the House of Commons.

Private Members' Bills
Private Members' Bills are Public Bills introduced by MPs or Members of the House of Lords who are not government ministers. Their purpose is to change the law in the same way as other Public Bills, although the amount of parliamentary time available to them is more limited.

Bill Stages
Public Bills pass through several stages as they are considered by Parliament. These include First Reading, Second Reading, Committee Stage, Report Stage and Third Reading. A Bill must be approved by both Houses before it can proceed to Royal Assent.

At Committee Stage, the Bill is examined in detail and amendments may be considered. Report Stage provides a further opportunity for amendments, while Third Reading is the final stage in each House. Once both Houses have agreed on the final text, the Bill proceeds to Royal Assent. When Royal Assent is granted, the Bill becomes an Act of Parliament, although its provisions may come into force at a later date or in stages.

House of Commons Explanatory Notes and House of Lords Explanatory Notes (from 1998)
Explanatory Notes accompany Bills and explain their purpose, effect and legislative context. They are intended to make Bills more accessible to readers who are not legally qualified or who do not have specialist knowledge of the subject matter.

Explanatory Notes should be read in conjunction with the Bill and are not intended to be a substitute for the legislation itself. They are usually published with the Bill and may be updated when a Bill is reprinted or introduced in the other House.

Command Papers (from 1900)
Command Papers are Government publications presented to Parliament to provide information or communicate decisions that the Government considers should be brought to the attention of one or both Houses. The term originated from the formula stating that papers were presented to Parliament by command of the monarch.

Command Papers cover a wide range of Government publications, including:

• State papers, including communiqués and treaties
• White Papers and Government proposals for legislation
• Government responses to Select Committee reports
• Reports of Royal Commissions
• Reports of major Committees of Inquiry and other commissions
• Annual reports, statistics and other publications from certain public bodies
• Some consultative documents, sometimes known as Green Papers

Command Papers have been published under a number of prefixes and numbering series over time, including C, Cd, Cmd, Cmnd, Cm and CP. The current series uses the CP prefix.

Public Bill Committee Papers (from 1919)
Public Bill Committees are House of Commons committees established to examine the details of a particular Bill during its committee stage. Their proceedings include consideration of the Bill's clauses and proposed amendments.

Proceedings of Public Bill Committees are normally published following each sitting and identify the sitting and Bill to which they relate, for example the First Sitting of a Finance Bill. Minutes of Proceedings for General Committees and Public Bill Committees record matters such as amendments moved, divisions and attendance and are also published as House of Commons Papers.

Acts of Parliament (from 1901)
An Act of Parliament is a law passed by Parliament and granted Royal Assent by the monarch. Acts may create new laws or amend existing legislation and may apply across the UK or to specific parts of the country.

An Act may come into force immediately, on a specified date or in stages, depending on the provisions of the legislation.

Acts of Parliament Explanatory Notes (from 1999)
Explanatory Notes to Acts provide information to help readers understand the purpose and effect of legislation. They are intended to make Acts more accessible to readers without specialist legal knowledge and should be read alongside the Act itself.

Draft Statutory Instruments and Statutory Instruments (from 1988)
Statutory Instruments (SIs) are a form of secondary legislation made under powers provided by an Act of Parliament. They allow detailed provisions to be introduced, amended or brought into force without requiring a new Act of Parliament.

Statutory Instruments are also referred to as delegated or subordinate legislation. Draft Statutory Instruments are presented in draft form where the relevant legislation requires parliamentary approval before the instrument can be made.

Links to Statutory Instruments rely on an external website which we do not maintain or update. The Statutory Instruments listed should therefore be used as a guide only and should not be relied upon as a comprehensive list of amending legislation.

House of Commons Hansard (from 1803) and House of Lords Hansard (from 1909)
Hansard is the official report of proceedings in Parliament. It provides an edited verbatim record of debates and proceedings in the House of Commons and House of Lords and is published when Parliament is sitting.

The House of Lords Hansard is combined with the House of Commons Hansard from 1803 to 1908. Separate reports are published for the House of Commons and House of Lords from 1909 onwards.