You may come across the terms ‘White Papers’ and ‘Green Papers’ when dealing with proposed legislation. These Papers are consultation papers produced by the government, which outline changes to existing legislation or government proposals that are still taking shape and are seeking comments from the public. A Green Paper refers to suggested reforms in the law and a White Paper outlines the proposals that are going forward and will appear in draft legislation, known as a Bill. There is no requirement for White or Green Papers to be produced before a Bill is introduced into Parliament but they are common when it comes to implementing government policy.
Watch this short film which highlights some of the points identified in the previous sections of this course. Make some personal notes for yourself and try to identify the reasons why we have a democracy, how a democracy is achieved in the UK and why we have legal rules.