Queen's Speech: Housing And Pensions On Agenda

A house building drive, pensions reform and a commitment to reform the EU have all been put on the agenda for the coalition in its last year.

The speech put the economic recovery at its centre, opening with a pledge to continue bringing down the deficit and cutting taxes "to increase people's financial security".

With the threat that the Bank of England will increase the base rate before the General Election, there is also a pledge to keep mortgage and interest rates low.

Despite warnings the Help to Buy scheme was causing a potentially damaging housing bubble, there is a pledge ministers will continue to promote it.

David Cameron, Nick Clegg and Ed Miliband

David Cameron had suggested he could amend the scheme after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney warned in an interview with Sky News that rising house prices were the biggest threat to economic recovery in the UK.

In an attempt to tackle the housing shortage, the Government also announced plans to boost home building.

This includes giving developers powers to push through applications without council approval and allowing the Government to sell off unused land for development.

Black Rod

A new garden city will be built in the Thames estuary at Ebbsfleet in Kent to tackle the housing shortage.

The Prime Minister and his Deputy Nick Clegg claimed the measures laid out in the Queen's Speech were "unashamedly pro-work, pro-business and pro-aspiration".

Just 11 new bills were introduced by the Queen at the State Opening of Parliament, which will bolster Labour's claims the coalition is now a "zombie government" which has run out of steam. In last year's speech there were 19 new bills.

The much-heralded pension reforms set out in George Osborne's Budget were also included in the speech. New legislation will mean pensioners will no longer be forced to buy annunities with their savings but can spend them as they like.

However, they will be given advice, which may include death estimates, to help them decide how best to invest that money.

The Queen delivers her speech

Pensions minister Steve Webb sparked controversy after saying pensioners should be free to buy Lamborghinis if they wanted to following criticism people could fritter their money away on retirement.

Another key measure is the Recall Bill, a 2010 coalition manifesto pledge championed by the Liberal Democrats, which will see voters given the power to sack MPs guilty of "serious misconduct".

In the wake of disastrous results in the European elections for the two parties,  the coalition pledged to continue to fight for reform of the EU and a better deal for member states.

Other measures include:

:: 5p charge for plastic bags

:: powers to allow fracking firms to dig under private property without asking

:: parents to face jail for emotional cruelty to children in new Cinderella Law

:: pledge to fight to keep Scotland in the union

:: limit to excessive redundancy payouts for public sector workers

:: tougher sentences for people traffickers

:: free school meals for infants

:: fines for employers who don't pay the minimum wage

:: £2,000 childcare vouchers for working parents

Labour leader Ed Miliband said: "We need action, we need answers, we need a programme for government equal to the scale of the challenge our country faces.

"We would have a Queen's Speech with legislation which would make work pay, reform our banks, freeze energy bills and build homes again in Britain. A Queen's Speech which signals a new direction for Britain, not one which offers more of the same."

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