King’s Speech 2026: All the brand new legal guidelines introduced as Keir Starmer fights for his future
King Charles has delivered a King’s Speech outlining 37 new Bills – ranging from police reform, changes to outdated leasehold laws and an asylum clampdown – but it came against the backdrop of Keir Starmer’s leadership uncertainty
King Charles set out Keir Starmer’s legislative programme during the State Opening of Parliament(Image: AP)
King Charles has unveiled a string of Government plans – including the creation of a “British FBI”, a new asylum clampdown and long-promised leasehold reforms.
The monarch set out Keir Starmer’s programme as pressure mounts on the PM – amid rumours Health Secretary Wes Streeting is on the brink of launching a leadership challenge.
Mr Starmer has been rocked after dozens of MPs demanded he steps down after disastrous election results across England, Wales and Scotland. Despite the unfolding chaos and confusion, the pomp and ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament went ahead, with the King’s Speech delivered in the House of Lords.
The speech outlined plans to pass 37 new Bills in the coming months.
Speaking ahead of the speech – one of the biggest events in the Parliamentary calendar – Mr Starmer said: “The British people expect the Government to get on with the job of changing our country for the better. Cutting the cost of living, bringing down hospital waiting lists and keeping our country safe in an increasingly dangerous world.
“Britain stands at a pivotal moment: to press ahead with a plan to build a stronger, fairer country or turn back to the chaos and instability of the past. My government will deliver on the promise of change for the British people.”
1. Immigration
The King’s Speech included a new Immigration and Asylum Bill, which will bring Shabana Mahmood’s controversial proposals into effect.
This will include measures to make it harder to appeal refusals and simplify decision making. It will also scale up the removal of people with no legal right to be in the UK, the Government said. As expected it will also tigheten the application of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to narrow the grounds that asylum seekers can claim their right to family life is impacted.
There will also be reforms to modern slavery legislation, which the Government says will tackle misuse.
2. ‘British FBI’
The King’s Speech will build on Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s policing reforms unveiled in January.
Ms Mahmood announced the number of police forces will be slashed, and a new National Police Service (NPS) will be created. Dubbed the British FBI by the Home Office, this will focus on country-wide and international organised crime and terrorism, freeing up forces to focus on the things that blight communities. The Police Reform Bill will put these reforms into law.
3. Leasehold reform
This King’s Speech will include measures to deliver on long-promised reforms to leasehold laws.
The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill “marks the beginning of the end for the feudal leasehold system”, the King’s Speech says. The legislation will introduce a ban on the use of leasehold for new flats and increase rights for extending leases and buying freeholds in England and Wales. There will also be a £250 cap on ground rent.
4. Nationalising British Steel
British Steel will be nationalised to secure thousands of jobs and boost economic growth.
The government saved the nation’s steel industry from the brink of collapse by seizing day-to-day control of the business’ works in Scunthorpe last year.
The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill sets out a long-term Steel Strategy to revitalise the sector, restore domestic production to sustainable levels and secure the industry’s role in supporting critical sectors such as infrastructure, defence and clean energy.
5. Cutting NHS bureaucracy
The King’s Speech includes The NHS Modernisation Bill to get rid of NHS England and streamline the health service.
After the quango is scrapped, responsibility for overseeing health spending will be shared between ministers and local health boards. And a single electronic patient record will be created.
This will make it easier for patients to get the care they need and cut down on bureaucracy, supporters say.
6. Closer European partnership
This one will get the Nigel Farages of this world wound up.
The European Partnership Bill aims to improve the UK’s trade relations with the EU with new deals on electricity, emissions, food and drink.
Earlier this week Mr Starmer vowed to align the UK more closely with Europe, and the Government believe the food and drink alone could add £5.1 billion a year to the economy, and up to £9b when combined with a deal on emissions.
7. Building safety
Labour came to power promising to bring in measures to prevent a repeat of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
But thousands of people are still living in homes with dangerous cladding, suffering from horrific anxiety and sky high insurance costs. The Remediation Bill will order buildings with unsafe cladding to be fixed, and give support to leaseholders and residents with the cost of the work. It will also set out requirements to fix buildings faster.
8. Water firm regulation
The Government has pledged to overhaul the way the water industry is overseen.
The King’s Speech will outline plans to replace Ofwat with a new single regulator. This will be responsible for tackling pollution and capping household bills in England.
9. ‘Tourism tax’
One of the controversial measures set to be included in the speech will be a ‘tourism tax’.
An overnight levy would be set by mayors to be invested back into local areas which see a large influx of visitors. The tax would apply to hotels and bed and breakfasts.
10. Hillsborough Law
The long-promised Hillsborough Law – setting out a legal obligation for public bodies and officials to tell the truth – is included in the King’s Speech.
The Public Office (Accountability) Bill will bring forward a duty of candour for public servants.
The Government has been criticised for missing former deadlines to introduce a Hillsborough law that were promised to the families of the 97 who tragically died in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. The stalemate had been caused by a dispute over the extent to which the new duty of candour will apply to the security services. The PM is set to scrap plans to allow security agencies an exemption.
11. Energy independence
The King’s Speech will include the Energy Independence Bill to end the UK’s dependence on fossil fuels.
No10 said the legislation would give ministers more power to tackle rising energy prices. It would also speed up the delivery of clean energy technologies and vital grid infrastructure, the Government said.
12. Investment in social housing
Ministers will bring forward the Social Housing Renewal Bill to increase long-term investment in social housing.
The legislation will protect much-needed social housing stock, improve protections for tenants in instances of domestic abuse and reduce unnecessary bureaucracy so providers can invest in new social and affordable homes.
13. Education for All
Legislation is included that promises to raise standards in schools and introduce generational reforms of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system.
The Education for All Bill will provide early support to children with SEND and enable local support by making mainstream settings more inclusive.
14. Representation of the People Bill
Elections reforms including lowering the voting age to 16 are included in the King’s Speech.
The Representation of the People Bill will also broaden the range of ID – such as UK bank cards – that can be used at polling stations and introduce tougher rules on political donations to protect UK elections.
15. Northern Powerhouse Rail Bill
Ministers are investing up to £45billion to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), which will see radically improved services between Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and York.
NPR aims to transform the North, delivering faster travel, more housing, improving access to jobs, and making it easier to move between towns and cities.
Delivered in three phases, it begins with upgrades to and electrification to lines east of the Pennines by 2030, and ten new routes begin between Liverpool and Manchester.
16. Protections for small businesses
Late payments cost the UK £11 billion each year and lead to the closure of 38 UK businesses every day.
The Small Business Protections (Late Payments) Bill will impose a ma maximum payment term of 60 days, enforce mandatory 8% interest for late payments, bring in a time limit for raising invoice disputes, and require boards or audit committees of late-paying large companies to explain their poor payment performance.
The Small Business Commissioner will also be given new powers to investigate businesses suspect of bad payment practises. These only impact UK to UK transactions, not international trade.
17. Clean water Bill
The Clean Water Bill promises to introduce a new Water Ombudsman to ensure complaints are taken seriously, and give consumers more power.
A new independent and integrated water regulator will be created, which will bring together Ofwat, the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency and Natural England.
There will also be action to deliver cleaner rivers, lakes and seas, strengthen drinking water protection, and put long-term resilience into the water system.
18. Ban on so-called conversion therapy
Abusive conversion practices that attempt to change a person’s sexuality will be banned under new legislation.
The Conversion Practices Bill – which is being published in draft for pre-legislative scrutiny – will ensure the criminal law offers protection from such practices. Research suggests nearly one in five GBT+ people in the UK have been subjected to someone trying to change, “cure”, or suppress their sexual orientation or gender identity.
19. Crackdown on ticket touts
The Ticket Tout Ban Bill – which is being published in draft for pre-legislative scrutiny – will destroy the operating model of ticket touts, improve access for genuine fans when tickets go on sale and end rip-off resale prices once and for all.
The legislation will make it illegal to resell a ticket for a live event at more than its original cost, cap the service fees changed by resale platforms and empower the Competition and Markets Authority to impose tough fines.
20. Competition Reform
The Government wants to promote competition and ensure the markets work well for consumers and business.
They will give the Competition and Markets Authority new powers, make market reviews quicker, and speed up the process of mergers.
21. Delivering growth
Ministers fear the current system of regulation is too slow, leaving the UK being other countries like the USA, China, Singapore and Canada.
The Regulating for Growth Bill will give regulators a duty to prioritise growth, and allow businesses to text new products and technology quicker.
22. Laws to improve sporting events
The Sporting Events Bill will improve the UK’s status as a world-leading host of major sporting events – such as EURO 2028.
The legislation will establish a framework that can be applied to major sporting events in the UK to ensure commitments to international sporting event organisers can be met without delay or uncertainty. The Bill will also coordinate transport planning for major sporting events.
23. Financial Services
The Enhancing Financial Services bill will help businesses to grow and boost consumer protections by modernising how the the sector is regulated.
The sector plays a crucial role in the UK’s economy, and is one of its most successful export areas.
24. Funding highways
The Highways (Financing) Bill will create a new way to fund large-scale road schemes, supporting the Government’s commitment to transform British transport.
Improving roads is vital to boosting the economy, as well as making journeys safer and easier.
25. Sovereign Grant
Since 1760, every Monarch has handed profits from The Crown Estate to the Government, and then is handed funding back in the form of a grant to support their official duties.
The Sovereign Grant Bill will enable the grant to be reduced once the Buckingham Palace Reservicing Programme concludes.
26. Digital ID laws
Ministers will introduce legislation to establish a legal framework to create, issue and use Digital ID.
The Digital Access Services Bill includes provisions to create and maintain the Digital ID in priority areas across the public and wider economy, as well as establishing a function for Digital Right to Work checks.
27. Mandelson peerages law
A mechanism for removing peerages from disgraced peers will be introduced in the King’s Speech.
The PM promised to change the law after he was unable to remove Peter Mandelson’s peerage when the close links between the Labour grandee and paedo Jeffrey Epstein became clear.
The Removal of Peerages Bill will introduce a strengthened system of accountability of peers that applies to both current and retired members of the House of Lords.
28. Civil Aviation
The Civil Aviation Bill will help unlock the benefits of expanding airports, to attract investment, boost tourism and create jobs.
There will also be an update to airport slots regulation, allowing a quicker response to emergency events that impact scheduling, such during the pandemic.
29. Taxi and private vehicle hire
The Government says the rules around taxis and private vehicle hire are outdate, and they want to make journeys safer, fairer and easier.
The Taxi and Private Vehicle Hire Bill scraps the Victorian era rules and replaces them with a single framework to give regulator more power, boost transparency and provide a more consistent experience for travellers.
30. Establish Great British Railways
The Railways and Passenger Bill will establish Great British Railways – a publicly owned company that will be at the reformed rail industry.
The legislation will set up a Passenger Watchdog that will set consumer standards for the railways, simplify fares and tickers and give more power to mayors to work in partnership with GBR.
31. Northern Ireland Troubles Bill
The Northern Ireland Troubles Bill promises to address the unfinished business from the Good Friday Agreement, with too many families still needing answers as to what happened to their families during the Troubles.
The Bill will provide protections for veterans and enable bereaved families to to get answers with the fullest possible disclosure by the Irish authorities.
32. Jury trials cut
The King’s Speech will set out legislation to push forward with controversial reforms to the courts system
Under the Courts Modernisation Bill, access to jury trials will be limited to those facing sentences of three years or more and defendants will also lose their right to elect a jury trial. It is hoped the reforms will help slash the record courts backlog – which sits at around 80,000 cases and is leaving victims waiting years for justice.
33. Nuclear regulation
The Government has promised a “new era of nuclear”, to deliver power that’s safe, reliable and clean.
It hopes to bring a secure supply of homegrown power to help reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
34. Tackling State Threats
The Tackling State Threats Bill will allow the Home Secretary new powers to clamp down on foreign states and organisations posing a threat to national security.
It will make it easier to prosecute members of proxy organisations – including front companies and organised groups. The Government says this will make it tougher for foreign intelligence services and those doing their bidding to operate.
35. Support for the armed services
The King announced the Government will put forward a new Armed Forces Bill – improving the rights of service personnel and veterans.
This legislation will establish the Defence Housing Service to finally address the shameful state of homes that members of the Armed Forces and their families have had to live in. It will expand the pool of reserves and extend the Armed Forces Covenant Legal Duty.
This means public services – like social care, child care, social security and employment support will have a legal requirement to consider the disadvantages service personnel experience.
36. Threats to national security
On top of the State Threats Bill, outlined above, the National Security Bill will create a list of new offences, particularly around cyberstrikes.
This will be aligned more closely with terror legislation and close gaps in the existing law, the Government says. Measures will include making it illegal to create and share the “most harmful” violent material that glorifies or trivialised violence.
There will also be a specific criminal offence of planning a mass casualty attack, and there will be updates to the Computer Misuse Act to target hackers and online national security threats.
37. Levy on electricity generators
Amid instability in the Middle East, the government is working to break the link between electricity and gas prices by moving older generators onto new fixed-price contracts.
Under the Electricity Generator Levy Bill, the Government will increase a levy on generators to ensure a proportion of any exceptional revenue that generators receive because of spikes in gas prices is available to ministers to support businesses and households with the cost of living.
