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Parliamentary year ends on Thursday Ceremony marks end of parliamentary year
(about 20 hours later)
The parliamentary session will end on Thursday, ahead of the Queen's Speech in two weeks' time, the government has announced. The parliamentary session has ended in its traditional prorogation ceremony, ahead of the Queen's Speech re-opening Parliament on Wednesday 8 May.
Lords chief whip Baroness Anelay of St Johns said Parliament would be prorogued - the official ceremony marking the end of the session - at the end of business. As Parliament prorogued, MPs and peers were notified of a number of bills that have now reached the statute book after receiving royal assent.
The Queen's Speech on Wednesday 8 May will mark the start of the new session. The list included a bill containing the government's "shares-for-rights" scheme, which had been the subject of a stand-off between MPs and peers.
Peers and MPs have ended a stand-off over a "shares for rights" scheme. Peers had twice thrown out the plan.
The House of Lords had twice thrown out the proposals - by margins of 54 and 69 votes - but following concessions from ministers, peers voted by a majority of 107 in favour. But they backed down after ministers introduced concessions to the Growth and Infrastructure Bill.
This came after the government offered changes to the Growth and Infrastructure Bill. One amendment will mean that employees must be given independent advice, paid for by their employers, before they can legally agree to give away some of their employment rights in exchange for at least £2,000 of shares.
They would mean employees would have to take independent advice, paid for by the company, and then wait seven days before agreeing to give away some of their employment rights in exchange for at least £2,000 of shares. A further concession introduces a seven-day cooling-off period for prospective owner-employees.
A separate bill reforming the law of defamation, which had also been subject to prolonged disagreement between the two Houses of Parliament, has also been given royal assent.