The civil servant as legislator: law-making in British administration

How are government policy commitments converted into legislation and what happens in the conversion? The role of civil servants in preparing legislation is far more important than is generally assumed. By exploring the composition and working methods of four recent bill teams in Britain - teams of civil servants given the task of developing Acts of Parliament - their crucial roles in initiating policies, placing them on the political agenda (even helping secure their place in a party manifesto), developing them, making sure they pass through parliament and enacting them once they have reached the statute books are assessed.