Bills and Laws

Negative SSIs are the most common type. They are looked at by the DPLR Committee and the lead committee (usually the committee who examined the Bill the SSI relates to). 

The lead committee has 40 days to look at the SSI. If it agrees with what the SSI does, it does not have to do anything more and the SSI will pass. But if it disagrees, it can recommend the Parliament cancel (“annul”) the SSI. The Parliament then votes to decide.

Negative SSIs must be laid for at least 28 days before they can come into force. If the Scottish Government needs to have the SSI in force sooner than this, it must write to the Presiding Officer explaining why.

Sometimes a negative SSI can be in force before the Parliament has looked at it. The Parliament can then annul the SSI and it would not be in force any longer. Scottish Government ministers could then:

• make a new SSI
• introduce the same one again 
• not introduce the SSI