Tail-end tally
As I write MPs and Peers are chomping through the remaining legislation before them, at breakneck speed. Getting anything through at all requires cooperation from the Opposition, so they have an effective veto on parts of bills they dislike - and as I'll detail below, Conservative spokesmen have been busy with their blue pencils.
So here's the scorecard so far from the "washup" of outstanding parliamentary business:
The Bribery Bill which creates new offences of bribing another person or being bribed where there is an intention to induce improper conduct, and introduces a new offence of bribery of foreign public officials, is now expected to pass without any significant change.
Not so the Children, Schools and Families Bill, which aims to create a series of entitlements for parents and pupils and makes sex education compulsory for older pupils.
Out go a set of new legal guarantees proposed for pupils and parents, including a right to one-on-one tuition for children falling behind, a new registration scheme for children being taught at home, a plan to create a new "school report card", a new requirement for teachers to obtain and renew a "licence to practise", a new duty for Youth Offending Teams to cooperate with the Youth Justice Board and mandatory PHSE - which covers sex and relationship education for over 15s.
Also filleted of its most controversial provisions is the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill (CRAG). Out goes the section removing the last 92 hereditary peers from the Upper House. This was supported by the government and the Lib Dems, but could not be put through because it was opposed by the Conservatives. And a similar fate befell the proposed referendum on switching to the Alternative Vote electoral system.
Some parts of the section to allow peers to resign or be suspended or expelled have also been removed, because the Conservatives and Lib Dems disliked them. But the provisions implementing the Kelly report, including recommendations on MPs' expenses, pay and pensions are expected go through.
So are new requirements for parliamentarians to be full UK taxpayers. The long awaited move to put the Civil Service on a statutory footing (something first mooted when Victoria was on the throne) has gone through - as have two other specifically parliamentary changes. Parliament will in future have to ratify all international treaties - and the ban on unauthorised demonstrations outside the palace of Westminster will be repealed.
Oh, and the presumption that general election counts will be held on the night following polling day is expected to pass into law as well.
On the Crime and Security Bill the police power to keep DNA profiles of innocent people is now expected to survive the bargaining process and go into law.
As is the controversial provision in the Digital Economy Bill to suspend the internet connections of people thought to be illegally downloading copyright material. But, as predicted, a proposed new funding system for independent news consortia to produce ITV regional news has been dropped.
The Finance Bill which is supposed to put the Budget into effect has lost some major provisions. Out go the 50p monthly broadband levy proposed by the government, the 10p rise in cider duty and the plan to end tax relief on furnished holiday lettings - all concessions extracted by the Opposition.
And retiring MP Dr Brian Iddon can celebrate the likely success of his Mortgage Repossessions (Protection of Tenants) Bill which will give provide a period of grace for tenants who currently can face immediate eviction. The measure affects people who've rented a home, unaware that the owner has not informed their mortgage company that it is being let out to tenants. If the owner then defaults on the mortgage, and the lender seeks to repossess, they have no rights at all.
Similarly Julie Morgan's Sunbeds (Regulation) Bill, which seeks to prevent fashion-conscious young people ending up with skin cancer, when all they wanted was a tan, looks like making it on to the statute book.
As does Alistair Burt's Sustainable Communities Bill, which seeks to extend a scheme to encourage grassroots initiatives.
UPDATE: There could still be a row in the Lords, though. Several members of the Upper House's considerable tribe of constitutionalists hate the very idea of passing constitutional legislation without proper scrutiny - and they've had little chance to trawl the detail. Much of the content is worthy and uncontroversial, in principle at least. The trouble is that the devil in issues like the status of the Civil Service lies in the detail. Lady Royall, the Leader of the House, has just said "further concessions" may be on offer. As I write, a nice little row is developing over the timetabling of CRAG.
I'm Mark D'Arcy and I'll be writing about what goes on in the chambers and committee rooms at Westminster.
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