Submission to the House of Lords Constitution Committee Inquiry into "Legislative Process: Stage 1: Preparing legislation for introduction in Parliament"

Executive summary 1. This submission responds questions 8–10, and draws on my experiences with the Open Policy–Making (OPM) process associated with the data sharing provisions that then formed part of the Digital Economy Bill. It also draws on my experiences as a member of the OPM “Quality Assurance” group for the analysis of responses to the consultation about the proposal. 2. The evidence presents my own views on the issues and not those of members of the QA Group. Nevertheless it is inspired by, and reflects on, conversations amongst the group. 3. I am supportive of the use of the OPM process for developing policy but identify significant operational concerns with the way the resulting consultation on the proposals was undertaken and analysed. 4. I make a series of suggestions for addressing these concerns.