2.2: Parliament

Question 1

What is Parliament and its two chambers?

Answer 1

PARLIAMENT

• The UK parliament is bicameral and comprises of the House of Commons and the House of Lords and possesses supreme legislative authority (parliamentary sovereignty).
• It also scrutinises the work of government and represents the diverse interests of the UK.
• Parliament also provides membership of the government as well as the executive and legislature being fused.

1. House of Commons
   - Parliament’s democratically elected chamber.
   - MPs represent constituencies across the UK, scrutinise government and vote on legislation.
   - As the democratic body representing the nations, the House of Commons can also dismiss a government if it loses a parliamentary vote of confidence.
   - 650 members.
   - If an MP dies, the vacancy is filled by holding a by-election in that constituency.
2. House of Lords
   - The unelected chamber of the Westminister Parliament.
   - Composed of life peers, Anglican bishops, it does not possess democratic legitimacy and so its main focus is scrutinising the work of the House of Commons.
   - 793 members (including Anglican bishops/Lord Spiritual).

Question 2

What have been the key historical events in the development of the UK parliament?

Answer 2

KEY HISTORICAL PARLIAMENT EVENTS

1. The De Montfort Parliament (1265)
   a) The decision of the nobleman Simon de Montford to summon commoners as well as nobles, churchmen and two knights from each county to Westminster Hall in 1265 to discus reforms is generally seen as the first recognisable parliament.
   - Came after King Henry III was captured at the Battle of Lewes in 1264 for abusing power.
   - Often seen as the first English Parliament
2. The Bill of Rights (1689)
   a) The agreement of King William III (1689 - 1702) to Parliament’s Bill of Rights established the principle of Parliamentary sovereignty following the glorious revolution.
3. Extensions of the Franchise (1832, 1867, 1884, 1918, 1928, 1969)
   a) These Parliamentary reform acts gradually extended the franchise until in 1928 the principle of the universal franchise was established when the vote was given to everyone over the age of 21.
   - In 1969, the voting age was reduced to 18.
4. Parliament Acts (1911 and 1949)
   a) The 1911 Act established the principle that the House of Lords, as an unelected body, could only delay, not veto, legislation that the House of Commons had passed.
   - In 1949, the lords delaying power was reduced to 1 year.
5. House of Lords Act (1999)
   a) All but 92 hereditary peers were removed from the House of Lords.
   - Most members of the Lords are life peers, which has made the House of Lords more assertive in dealings with the House of Commons.
   - Improved the legitimacy of the Lords.

Question 3

Who are the significant members of the House of Commons and what are their roles?

Answer 3

HOUSE OF COMMONS MEMBERS

1. Members of Parliament
   a) Members for regions
   - 533 in England.
   - 59 in Scotland.
   - 40 in Wales.
   - 18 in Northern Ireland.
   b) Many represent Political Parties
   - Some run as independents; Dr Richard Taylor won the seat of Wyre Forest in 2001 and 2005 on the commitment to keep open Accident and Emergency facilities at Kidderminster Hospital.
   - Some MPs are expelled or resign and therefore serve as an independent.
   - Douglas Carswell (Clacton, Essex) left UKIP to serve as an independent in March 2017.
2. Frontbench and Backbench MPs
   a) Frontbench MPs join the government as senior ministers, junior ministers or permanent private secretaries and are bound by collective ministerial responsibility.
   - They present and publicly support government policy from the frontbenches.
   - The opposition will also have a shadow cabinet/frontbench that will scrutinise their counterparts.
   b) Sit behind the ministers and hold leverage with votes, often rebelling against the government due to greater freedom.
   c) All are protected by Parliamentary Privilege.
3. Party Whips
   a) Main political parties will appoint whips to maintain party discipline.
   - MPs are elected on a party manifesto, however, they also represent the interests of their constituencies using their judgement.
   - Parliamentary leadership needs to keep control of MPs since, without it, the party could break down.
   b) Whips encourage MPs tp support along party lines as well as reporting back any potential large-scale rebellions which might encourage leadership to modify its position to avoid defeat.
   c) Important issues will require a three-line whip issued to require MPs to attend a vote/division and vote accordingly to the demands of leadership. If they refused, they can have the party whip withdrawn from them and lose their party membership.
   - EXAMPLE. On 3 September 2019, the British Conservative Party withdrew the whip from 21 of its MPs who had supported an emergency motion to allow the House of Commons to undertake proceedings on the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 6) Bill on 4 September, including David Gauke, Dominic Grieve, Sir Nicholas Soames and Rory Stewart with 298 at the dissolution of Parliament.
   d) Whips are important in times of a small Parliamentary majority or a minority administration.
   - From 1976 to 1979, the Callaghan government had to survive without a Parliamentary majority and tight whips.
   - Michael Heseltine MP brandished the mace when he felt that Labour had unfairly won a division by 1 vote.
   - Roger Sims MP (Conservative) was late to a Parliamentary vote enabling the government to win by one vote.
   - The Callaghan government collapsed when a vote of no confidence by Margaret Thatcher passed by 311-310.
4. The Speaker of the House of Commons
   a) An MP whose role it is to be impartial.
   - The speaker does not engage in political debate, instead is challenged with regulating and ensuring that Parliament functions effectively.
   b) Speakers arrange parliamentary business with the leaders of the main political parties.
   - Ensuring that procedure is followed and presides over debates.
   c) Disciplinary function as if MPs are deliberately abusive or disobedient they can be suspended.
   d) The speaker is elected by a secret ballot of all MPs and ceremonially dragged to the Speaker’s Chair at each new parliament.
   - They seek re-election, although this is usually a formality.
   e) EXAMPLE. John Bercow was speaker from 2009 - 2019.
   - Standing up for the rights of Parliament against the executive.
   - Supported reforms to increase the power of backbench MPs to scrutinise government.
   - MPs are allowed to ask more ‘urgent questions’, which ministers must respond to in the same day.
   - EXAMPLE. John Bercow allowed 3,547 urgent questions between (2009 - 2013) whilst his predecessor Michael Martin (2000 - 2009) allowed only 1234 across a longer period.
   - He has been critical of government attempts to dominate parliamentary time.
   - In 2018, he reacted furiously when the government attempted to limit the time provided for an opposition day debate on the Grenfell Tower disaster.
   - He has been accused of bullying and acting beyond his authority when he expressed opposition to Trump addressing Parliament.
   - Broke precedent by allowing Conservative remain MP Dominic Grieve to successfully table an amendment to a government motion giving Parliament more control over the timetable of Brexit in January 2019.
   - In March 2019, Bercow stood up for Parliament against the executive when he stopped Theresa May from reintroducing her unamended Brexit deal into the House of Commons, referencing Erskin May in 1844 that ‘A motion or an amendment which is the same, in substance, as a question which has been deciding during a session, may not be brought forward during that same session’.
   f) Lindsay Hoyle is the current speaker since December 2019.
5. The leader of the official opposition
   a) The role of the opposition is to thoroughly scrutinise the government, whilst convincing the public that the official opposition is an alternative government in waiting.
   - Since the 1970s, the opposition has been able to claim short money from public funds to finance the leader of the opposition’s office and help with Parliamentary business.
   b) The leader of the opposition is given the right to ask 6 questions at Prime Minister’s Question Time (PMQT).
   - Enables the leader of the opposition to put high-profile pressure on the PM by highlighting any failures of policy and offering their own political solutions.
   c) Leader of the Opposition appoints their own shadow cabinet, who are tasked with holding the government accountable and persuading the electorate that they are competent.

Question 4

Who are the significant members of the House of Lords and what are their roles?

Answer 4

HOUSE OF LORDS MEMBERS

1. Peers
   a) Hereditary peers (Lords Temporal)
   - Those who claim membership on the base of their possession of a hereditary noble title.
   - Reform in 1999 removed 750 hereditary peers, with 92 hereditary peers could be elected to the Lords as a compromise.
   b) Lords spiritual
   - 26 Church of England Bishops.
   c) Life peers (Lords Temporal)
   - (Life Peerages Act 1958)
   - Gave the PM the authority to nominate life peers (of both sexes) to the Lords.
   - They do not pass on their title and their appointment is based on public service to the nation.
   - Professional legitimacy.
2. Lord Speaker
   a) Similar to the Commons Speaker in managing the chamber and advising on the procedure.
   - It is more courteous than the Commons.
3. Appointments
   a) By the PM on the advice of Downing Street’s Main Honours Committee (politically neutral Appointments Commission).
   b) 2018 House of Lords Composition
   - 249 Conservative.
   - 188 Labour.
   - 186 Crossbench.
   - 98 Liberal Democrat.
   - 26 Anglican Bishops.
   c) Tony Blairs Appointments (recommending 374 appointments).
   - 162 Labour appointments.
   - 96 Crossbench appointments.
   - 62 Conservative appointments.
   - 34 Liberal Democrats appointments.
   d) Buying influence (cronyism and nepotism)
   - Harold Wilson had a ‘lavender list’ of appointments to the Lords including his close friend Joseph Kagan in 1976.
   - David Cameron was accused of similar cronyism by appointing 13 Conservative peers (chief of staff Ed Llewellyn, head of his policy unit Camilla Cavendish, Head of Operations at Downing Street Liz Sugg), 2 crossbenchers and just 1 labour peers.
4. Discipline and removal
   a) The House of Lords Reform Act 2014.
   - Private members bill introduced by Dan Byles MP making it possible for members f the House of Lords to resign or retire.
   b) House of Lords (Expulsion and Suspension) Act 2015.
   - The mechanism for the expulsion of peers from the House of Lords because of criminal activity or non-attendance.
   - Improved the effectiveness of the chamber.
5. Cabinet Members
   a) Nicky Morgan was appointed to the role of Culture Secretary after being awarded a peerage following her stepping down from the Commons in 2019.
   b) EXAMPLE. Gordon Brown recalled Peter Mandelson from the European Commission following the 2008 financial crash, appointing him to the Lords such that he could serve as the business secretary.

Question 5

What are the main functions of the House of Commons?

Answer 5

FUNCTIONS OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS

1. Legitimation
   a) The first purpose was to provide the consent that would legitimise the decisions of the monarch.
   b) Parliamentary bills require the consent of the House of Commons before they can be enacted.
   - Consent of the representatives of the nation has to be acquired in order to legitimise changes to the law.
   c) Since the Parliament Act 1911, the Commons has the exclusive right to approve the budget.
   - The Commons debates the Budget proposals over 4 days and then scrutinises the government’s resulting Financial Bill in a Committee of the Whole House and a Pubic Bill Committee.
   d) Convention gas developed whereby the Commons should be consulted over committing British forces to military actions to legitimise choice.
   - In past times, the PM has exercised the Royal Prerogative to achieve this.
   - EXAMPLE. Tony Blair called for ‘British Parliamentary approval for the invasion of Iraq 2003’ with 412 in favour and 149 against.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2013, David Cameron believed that military action against Syria’s Bashar al-Assad was justified after an alleged chemical attack by his government, yet the motion was defeated 285-272 votes.
   e) Yet as it is not codified, the PM is capable of bypassing legitimising votes due to Royal Prerogative.
   - EXAMPLE. Theresa May decided to join American-led assaults on the Syrian Government in 2018 without the consultation of Parliament. Jeremy Corbyn called it a ‘flagrant disregard’ of the legitimising rights of Parliament.
   - EXAMPLE. Theresa May’s government began negotiations to negotiate the exit to the EU without consulting Parliament, with Gina Miller 2017 working through the SC declaring that the PM could not legally do this through the Royal Prerogative.
   f) EXAMPLE. In August 2019, Parliament was ordered to be prorogued by Queen Elizabeth II upon the advice of the Boris Johnson. The prorogation, or suspension, of Parliament was to be effective from the 9 of September 2019 and last until the State Opening of Parliament on 14 October 2019.
   - R (Miller) v The Prime Minister and Cherry v Advocate General for Scotland 2019, ruled Boris’ advice was unlawful.
   - The Order in Council permitting the prorogation was null and of no effect and Parliament had, in fact, not been prorogued.
2. Legislation
   a) Process by which Parliamentary bills become law.
   - Each Government will introduce public bills into the Commons, going through 2 readings in the Commons before reaching the Public Bill Committee stage where it is examined and amendments are suggested.
   - When it reaches the report stage it will be voted upon.
   - After the 3rd reading, it will be sent to the House of Lords where it undergoes a similar process.
   - Passing both chambers successfully, it will receive Royal Assent and become law
   b) The government has too much power over the legislative process.
   - If the government has a large Parliamentary majority it will be able to rely on the loyalty of its MPs to vote for the bill, so making debates and votes a formality.
   - The composition of Public Bill Committees has been criticised. Membership will be proportionate to party strength in the Commons, so this will always gove the government a majority.
   - The Whips also influence the selection of Public Bill Committee members and they will be instructed to vote according to the whip on proposed amendments to the bill.
   - EXAMPLE. The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 passed in just 18 days.
   c) The partisan nature of a Public Bill Committee might, therefore, be seen as undermining its ability to make practical improvements to a bill and can often lead to badly thought out legislation.
   - EXAMPLE. The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 was responsible for the introduction of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs). Yet the criteria for an ASBO, which was to cause alarm, harassment or distress’ was imprecisely worded that it could punish people for ‘excessive singing or rudeness to neighbours’.
   - EXAMPLE. The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991
   d) MPs do often rebel over legislation by defying their Whips.
   - Leads to embarrassing government defeats.
3. Scrutinise
   a) The House of Commons, as the democratically elected chamber, has a major role in scrutinising the government.
   b) Select Committees and Public Bill Committees scrutinises proposed legislation and departments
   c) Questions to ministers
   - PMQs every Wednesday involves a question-answer session.
   - Yet it has been criticised for being unduly theatrical and largely a point-scoring exercise dominated by the PM and leader of the opposition.
   d) Debates
   e) Opposition Days
   - The opposition sets the agenda.
   - EXAMPLE. On 29th April 2009, the British Government was defeated in an opposition day vote on the subject of settlement rights for the Gurkhas.
4. Representation
   a) MPs are accountable to their constituents.
   - Yet many MPs do not act as delegates, instead, they balance the interest of constituents and the demands of the party Whips in respect to their own conscience.
   - Tony Benn, served as an MP for Bristol South East and MP for Chesterfield for 47 years, saying that loyalty to constituency commitments are important.
   - EXAMPLE. Hazel Blears (Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government) supported 2006 protests against a planned closure of part of a hospital in her Salford Constituency.
   - EXAMPLE. Chris Grayling stopped Epsom A and E from closing.
   b) EXAMPLE. Boris Johnson was against HS2 as Mayor of London and campaigned against it when MP for Uxbridge.
   - Yet has proceeded with the project as PM in Feb 2020.
   c) EXAMPLE. 8 Conservative MPs (including Zac Goldsmith) disobeyed a three-line whip to vote against the expansion of Heathrow in June 2018, as Richmond Park would be in the flight path.
   d) The Commons is still not sufficiently reflective of social configurations of the UK today since it is dominated by white middle-class males (29% of MPs in 2015 were female, compared to 51% of the population).
5. Debate
   a) Enables MPs to weigh up the likely impact of Public Bills, such as a 3rd runway at Heathrow.
   b) MPs also debate Private Members Bills and other issues on opposition days, adjournment debates or early day motions.
   - Early day motions to initiate adjournment debates, which give them the chance to publicise their views on subjects important.
   c) Emergency debates
   - EXAMPLE. After Theresa May failed to consult the Commons over military strikes in Syria in 2018, an emergency debate was organised
   - Normally major proposals such as committing British Troops to military action will generate full-scale debates.
   d) Debating conflict
   - 2015 Labour was divided over Cameron’s proposal for bombing ISIL targets in Syria.
   - Jeremy Corbyn gave his MP a free vote rather than a three-line whip.
   - Shadow foreign secretary, Hilary Benn made the case for military action.
   - 66 Labour MPs voted with the Government, 397-223 in favour of airstrikes.
   e) Parliament was recalled in 2016 to pay tribute to the murdered MP, Jo Cox.
6. Providing and sustaining Government
   a) As the legislature and the executive are fused, they are interdependent.
   - MPs have an opportunity to prove their abilities in the legislature and can persuade the executive of their fitness for government office.
   - Not always appoints talent, but balancing the government between rival factions.
   b) Confidence and Supply
   - In the event of a minority government, where the governing party does not form a formal coalition, it relies on a limited agreement with other parties to keep itself in office.
   - Normally seen as more flexible (and thus stable) than a coalition.
   - EXAMPLE. The Conservative Party had a confidence and supply agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party in 2017 following the Conservatives were 8 seats short of a majority. The DUP supported the party in votes, especially the governments budget in return for a secured extra £1 billion of funding for Northern Ireland, with the money focused on health, infrastructure and education budgets.
   - EXAMPLE. James Callaghan had a Labour-Liberal pact in 1977-1978. There was talk of the SNP supporting Labour in the 2015 and 2019 elections.
7. Redress of Grievances
   a) MPs being lobbied by constituents about their concerns.
   - Can lead to MPs to take up such causes and can persuade the government to change laws or attempt to change the law themselves using private members legislation.

Question 6

What are the main functions of the House of Lords?

Answer 6

FUNCTIONS OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS

1. Legislation
   a) As the un-elected chamber, and in accordance with the Salisbury Convention, the Lords are unable to stop bills that have passed the House of Commons from becoming law.
   - Yet the expertise of life peers means that bills can be examined in detail in the chamber itself and committee stages.
   - Often Parliamentary ping-pong between chambers.
   b) The primary purpose is a refining chamber.
   - Focusing on the implications of a bill and refining its contents, any member being able to propose amendments.
   c) They are less influenced by the dictates of the whips and so can address the merits and demerits of the legislation with independence and an open mind.
   d) Heavy defeats in the House of Lords may persuade the government to reconsider whether to modify or even continue with legislation.
   - Especially with legislation that has only passed the Commons with a small majority.
   - EXAMPLE. In Counter-Terrorism Bill 2008.
   - EXAMPLE. The lords voted for amendments on Theresa May Brexit withdrawal bill in 2019 which provided a softer Brexit, as she was leading a minority government, she was not sure of the support in the House of Commons to overturn the amendments.
   e) Due to the Parliaments Act 1911 and 1949, the Government can pass legislation over the objection of the Lords.
   - Can delay non-financial legislation for 1 year.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2000, the Sexual Offences Amendment Act 2000, which reduced the legal age for gay sex from 18 to 16, easily passed the House of Commons, yet the Lord’s opposition was overridden when the Government invoked the 1911 and 1949 Parliament Acts to give the bill royal assent (bypassing the Lords).
2. Scrutiny
   a) Scrutinise the work of government in oral questions to ministers through committees.
   - Instead of monitoring specific departments, committees concentrate on major political issues.
   - Some are permanent and others are set up on an ad hoc basis to deal with more specific issues (temporary committees)
   b) Joint House committees with the House of Commons.
   c) Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.
   - Significant in highlighting concerns which may then be debated about in the Lords, such as George Osbourne’s use of secondary legislation to cut tax credits (being deeply criticised in the Lords).
3. Legitimation, representation, provide government and debate
   a) Since the Lords are unelected and therefore can not claim a legitimising function, it also does not have a representative role in a democratic sense.
   - May provide government ministers.
   b) Debates are frequent and fundamental.
   - Lord Steel proposed a debate in 2018 following the killing of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military which raised the profile of the situation.

Question 7

What are Statutory Instruments?

Answer 7

STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS (HENRY VII CLAUSES)

• Changes to the details of Acts of Parliament being delegated to government ministers and civil servants.
• Controversial as it lacks legitimacy, as it is secondary legislation to change laws (primary legislation is voted in Parliament), governing from the shadows.
• Removes the scrutiny and there has been an increase in the number of statutory instruments.
• 1409 Statutory Instruments were implemented in 2019.
• 200 Statutory Instruments were implemented in 2014.

Question 8

What is the Dangerous Dogs Act?

Answer 8

DANGEROUS DOGS ACT 1991

1. Knee-jerk legislation.
   a) Put restrictions on the ownership of 4 dogs, including the Pit Bull Terrier, as well as making it an offence to allow a dog to be ‘dangerously out of control’.
   - The RSPCA criticised the act for arbitrarily banning certain breeds which implies that the other breeds are ‘safe’.
   b) Effectiveness of the act, between 2005 to 2006, the NHS reported a 76% increase in the number of admissions for cases involving dog bites.
   - From 1991 to 2018, 37 people were killed by dogs in the UK (more than 24 were from breeds not specified on the act).

Question 9

What are some notable Government Legislature defeats in the House of Commons?

Answer 9

EXAMPLE NOTABLE GOVERNMENT DEFEATS

1. Shops Bill 1986
   - Defeated on its second reading when 72 Conservative MPs voted against plans to deregulate Sunday trading.
   - This was in spite of Thatcher’s 140 seat majority, her government lost the vote 282-296.
2. 90-day detention of Terrorist Suspects 2005
   - 49 Labour MPs were unconvinced by the Blair Governments proposal to hold suspects in custody.
   - Defeated 291-322.
   - Was later amended to 28 days in the Terrorism Act 2006.
3. Reform of Sunday Trading Laws 2016
   - Plans by Cameron to allow large shops to extend their opening hours in England and Wales were defeated 286-317 when 27 Conservative MPs rebelled against the Government and the SNP also voted against despite this just concerning England and Wales.
4. Brexit Bill 2017
   - An amendment to the Brexit Bill, giving Parliament the legal right to vote on the final Brexit deal, was passed against the wishes of the Government by 309-305.
   - 11 Conservative MPs defied a three-line whip.
   - Stephen Hammond Tory MP, put his “country and constituency before party and voted with my principles to give Parliament a meaningful vote”.
5. EU Withdrawal Agreement 2018
   - In January 2019, Theresa May’s government was defeated by 432- 202 on the Brexit deal it was offering Parliament.
   - Crushing defeat over her government’s central policy by 230 votes was the biggest defeat that any British Government has ever suffered.
   - In March 2019, a modified deal was once again defeated by 391-242.
   - The third attempt in March 2019 was once again defeated by 344-286.

Question 10

What is a notable Government Legislature defeats in the House of Lords?

Answer 10

EXAMPLE NOTABLE GOVERNMENT DEFEATS
1. In 2008, clauses in the Counter-Terrorism Bill enabled terror suspects to be held for 42 days without charge were decisively defeated in the Lords by 191 votes. Since the proposals had only passed the Commons by 9 votes, Gordon Brown decided to drop them from the bill.

Question 11

What is the Salisbury Convention?

Answer 11

SALISBURY CONVENTION

• Since the Lords cannot claim democratic legitimacy, the Salisbury Convention established the principle in 1945 that the Lords will not seek to block or delay legislation that was contained in the governing party’s manifesto.
• To do so would be to oppose the democratically expressed will of the public in a general election.
• The Lords can still propose amendments but these should not be designed to wreck the bill.

Question 12

What are the different types of Committees and their role?

Answer 12

COMMITTEES

1. Public Bill Committee
   a) Once a bill has passed its second reading in the Commons, its details are considered by this committee, scrutinising proposed legislation and offer amendments to the wording of bills before it returns to the Commons for the report stage and then its third reading.
2. Select Committees
   a) Introduced by Norman St John Stevas (leader of the House) in 1979, composed of a small number of MPs, investigating the work of departments of state and specific subjects/policy commitments (alike House of Lords Select Committees).
   - Some issues can be addressed by a joint committee of the House of Commons and Lords
   b) Membership of Select Committees are generally 11.
   c) Select committees are non-partisan (unlike public committees)
   - Membership is chosen as highly regarded backbenchers, rather than following a Whip.
   - Chairs possess considerable cross-party support and also receive a significant financial bonus to have a salary alike to a junior minister.
   - Provides a strong mandate directly from the legislature to confront powerful departments of state.
   - EXAMPLE. From 2014 - 2019, Sarah Wollaston MP has been the chair of the Health and Social Care Committee (now under Jeremy Hunt). As a former practitioner and an independent former Tory MP, she is seen as ideally suited for scrutiny.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2015, Frank Field was elected chair of the Work and Pensions Committee and re-elected in 2017. An MP since 1979, Fields career has followed poverty and welfare and, as one of the only Labour MPs to support Brexit, has a reputation for his own mind. In 2018, he resigned the Labour whip to sit as an independent Labour MP after he lost a vote of confidence through his local party members.
   d) Select committees regularly consult with ministers, civil servants and experts, and can send for ‘persons, papers and records’ to help investigations.
   - They can compel attendance from members of the public and, because of parliamentary privilege, MPs can ask them the most potentially libellous questions without prosecution.
   - MP’s are expected to attend and have no right to silence.
   - EXAMPLE. In July 2003, Weapons Expert David Kelly was called to testify before the Foreign Affairs Committee over claims that he had provided evidence to the BBC that there was insufficient evidence that Saddam Hussein possed Weapons of Mass Destruction. When being hesitant after being asked which journalist he had met, Andrew Mackinlay MP said he was under “obligation to reply” - Kelly committed suicide 2 days later under the pressure.
   e) Reports from select committees are not binding, the non-partisan nature and expert witnesses can have a significant impact on government.
   - They are well respected for being evidence-based, with hearings televised and reported to increase their influence, especially with the public interest.
   - EXAMPLE. The Transport Select Committee held Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin to account for the controversy over the West Coast Main Line rail franchise in 2012.
   f) There is a broad scope of influence.
   - The Treasury Select Committee has the right to veto the chancellor of the exchequer’s choice for the Head of the Office of Budget Responsibility.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2014, the Home Office took the Passport Office under ministerial control, following a critical report by the Home Affairs Select Committee, as the CEO of the Passport Office, organised as an executive agency at the time, had been criticised for a large backlog in applications into summer.
   g) Some committees are temporary.
   - EXAMPLE. When Theresa May established the Department for Exiting the EU in 2016, a select committee was set up soon after to examine its work under chairman Hilary Benn MP, exploring various scenarios for departure.
   h) Their power is limited to some extent.
   - There is a high turnover of committee membership, with many members not attending regularly.
   - The government accepts 40% of select committee recommendations.
   - Although resources have increased, they can only cover a limited range of topics in-depth and there is a tendency to avoid long term issues.
   - Committee’s power to summon witnesses is considerable but not unlimited.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2013, as Home Secretary, Theresa May blocked the Home Affairs Select Committee from interviewing the Head of MI5, Andrew Parker.
3. Public Accounts Select Committee
   a) Ensures that government expenditure is as effective as possible and holds ‘the government and civil servants to account for the delivery of public services’.
   - An alternative career path to the ministerial ladder.
   - EXAMPLE. Margaret Hodge, chair of the public accounts committee from 2010 to 2015, said that she had more influence in this role than as a government minister in her career.
   - Meg Hillier is the current chair.
4. Liaison Committee
   a) Represents the chairs of all the select committees and regularly questions the PM.
   - Significantly less confrontational than PMQT and its form of questioning allows greater opportunities for extended discussion.
   b) The reputation of its members also means that it is highly influential in holding the PM to account for government policy.
5. The Committee of Standards
   a) Oversees the work of the Parliamentary Commissioner on standards, an official who is in charge of regulating MPs conduct, including their financial affairs.
6. House of Lords
   a) Permanent Committees
   - European Union Committee.
   - Science and Technology Committee.
   - International Relations Committee.
   - Constitution Committee.
   - Economic Affairs Committee (broader issues, such as the Economic Case for HS2).
   - Communications Committee.
   - Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.
   b) Temporary Committees
   - Artificial Intelligence Committee.
   - Citizenship and Civic Engagement Committee.
   - Intergenerational Fairness and Provisions Committee.
   - Regenerating Seaside Towns Committee.
   - Rural Economy Committee.
   - Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.
7. Joint Committees (between both Houses)
   a) Joint Committee on Human Rights.
   - Has produced significant reports on free speech in universities and the wrongful detention and deportation of members of the ‘Windrush Generation’.

Question 13

What is Parliamentary Privilege?

Answer 13

PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGE

• A principle which protects MPs and peers from being sued for slander, so ensuring that they have freedom of speech within Westminster.
• It also includes the right of Parliament to exclusive cognisance, which means it controls its own internal affairs without outside interference.
• EXAMPLE. Ryan Giggs had a super-injunction on his extramarital affair in 2011, John Hemming used Parliamentary Privilege to comment on the case without prosecution.

Question 14

What are the exclusive powers of the House of Commons?

Answer 14

HOUSE OF COMMONS EXCLUSIVE POWERS

1. Sole right to defeat a bill
   a) Also the executive requires the consent of the Commons for legislation to be enacted.
2. Right to dismiss the government if it loses a vote of no confidence
   a) As Parliamentary legitimacy derives from the consent of Parliament as representatives of the nation and if that consent is withdrawn then the government can no longer claim a mandate to govern.
   - EXAMPLE. James Callaghan managed to survive a minority government for 3 years to 1979 where they lost a vote of no confidence in March 311-310 votes. Asking the Queen to dissolve Parliament and taking “our case to the country”.
3. To give consent to taxation and public expenditure.
   a) As Parliament represents the taxpayer, there is a tradition that the Lords cannot interfere with money bills.
   - Therefore the Chancellor of the Exchequer must sit in the Commons where the annual budget is always presented.
4. Legitimises controversial decisions such as the dissolution of Parliament, and commitment of the UK to major military operations.
5. Represent the nation and is accountable to it in the general election.

Question 15

What are the exclusive powers of the House of Lords?

Answer 15

HOUSE OF LORDS EXCLUSIVE POWERS

1. Revising chamber.
   a) Proposing amendments to government legislation.
   b) As there are no commitments to constituencies, they can devote more time to scrutiny and independence.
   c) They can suggest legislation.
   - EXAMPLE. The Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 began in the Lords as a Private Members Bill.
2. Continuation of public service
   a) EXAMPLE. Lord Fowler served as Margaret Thatcher’s secretary of state for Health from 1981 to 1987.
   - By explaining that HIV/AIDS could be passed on by any sexual encounter in the “Don’t die of ignorance” campaign, he made combatting it much more effective as well as disassociating AIDS from being a ‘gay epidemic’.
   - As a member of the House of Lords, Fowler chaired a committee on AIDS/HIV in 2010 - 2011 which reported that government AIDS-prevention measures were ‘inadequate’/
   - In 2014, he wrote “AIDS: Don’t die of prejudice’ and was overwhelming;y voted Lord Speaker in 2016.
   b) Harold MacMillan MP re-entered Parliament as the Earl of Stockton.
   - In his maiden speech, he attacked Thatcher’s handling pf the miner’s strike and was critical of the leadership until his death in 1984.
3. Can delay legislation for one Parliamentary session but cannot veto it according to the Salisbury Convention, if proposed legislation has been included in the winning party’s manifesto.
   a) Yet the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 do not extend to statutory instruments, which they can theoretically veto.
   - EXAMPLE. This was seen when the Lords voted in 2015 to delay planned cuts to tax credits by 289-272 in the ‘Draft Tax Credits (Income Thresholds and Determination of Rates) (Amendment) Regulations 2015’
4. If the House of Commons voted to extend the life of Parliament beyond 5 years, the Lords could constitutionally reject this proposal.

Question 16

What are 3 examples of specialist expertise in the House of Lords?

Answer 16

EXAMPLESPECIALIST EXPERTISE IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS

1. Baroness Chakrabarti
   - Director of the civil liberties pressure group ‘Liberty’ from 2003 to 2016.
   - In 2016, she was nominated as a life peer by David Cameron’s resignation honours list.
   - As Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow attorney general, she often speaks on issues connected with civil liberties and women’s rights.
2. Lord Winston
   - Robert Winston has been a Labour member of the House of Lords since 1995.
   - An embryologist who pioneered in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), he has chaired the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology.
   - Argued in the Lords that science teaching in Primary needed to be improved.
3. Baron Shinkwin
   - Kevin Shinkwin spent most of his career in the voluntary/charity sector.
   - He has created a life peer in 2015 and sits with the Conservatives.
   - Born with osteogenesis imperfecta, he is equally concerned to advance the equal treatment of disabled people.
   - He has criticised the UK’s abortion laws as a ‘licence to kill for the crime of being disabled’.

Question 17

What are examples of times when the Parliament Act has been used to bypass the House of Lords?

Answer 17

PARLIAMENTS ACT TO BYPASS THE LORDS
1. Changing the voting system for European Parliament Elections (1999) in the ‘European Parliamentary Elections Act 1999’.

2. Equalising the age of consent for gay and heterosexual people (2000) in the ‘Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000’.
3. Banning hunting with dogs (2004) with ‘Hunting Act 2004’.

Question 18

What are the stages of a bill going through Parliament?

Answer 18

BILL PROCESS THROUGH PARLIAMENT

1. Origin
   a) Green Paper
   - A document setting out options for legislation/manifesto promise and inviting consultation.
   b) White Paper
   - A more detailed statement of the government’s intentions.
2. First Reading
   a) The bill is formally presented to Parliament by the relevant minister.
   - There is no discussion or vote at this point.
3. Second Reading
   a) The main principles of the bill are debated.
   b) The government front bench will introduce the bill.
   - The opposition front bench and backbenchers will then respond and a vote will be taken.
   - The government is normally expected to win this vote.
   - EXAMPLE. The last bill to be defeated in this stage was the Shops Bill in 1986.
4. Committee Stage
   a) The bill will next be considered by a House of Commons Public Bill Committee, or if it began in the Lords, by the whole chamber.
   - At this point, amendments will be proposed to the legislation.
   b) In the Commons, each public bill will have its own committee set up to scrutinise detail.
   c) The budget and bills of constitutional significance such as the EU (withdrawal) Bill are scrutinised by a Committee of the Whole House in the chamber of the House of Commons.
5. Report Stage
   a) The bill, and any amendments added to it, are now debated and votes are taken upon them.
   - Further amendments can be proposed by MPs who were not on the Public Bill Committee.
6. Third Reading/Transfer
   a) The amended bill will be further debated before being transferred to the other house, where it will go through the same stages.
   - No votes are allowed ay this stage.
   b) Parliamentary ping pong as the bill can go back and forth for 1 year between the 2 houses.
7. Royal Assent
   a) Once a bill has passed both chambers it will received the Royal Assent.
   - Should the House of Lords refuse to support a bill, it can still become law by the government invoking the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949.
   b) Delegated Legislation can often skip steps to Royal Assent.

Question 19

What are the different types of Bills?

Answer 19

TYPES OF BILLS

1. Legislative Bills
   - Introduced in either chamber. If it passes both houses, it receives the Royal Assent and becomes an Act of Parliament.
   - Due to the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, a legislative bill can still become law even if it is opposed by the House of Lords.
2. Government/Public Bills
   a) Brought to the floor by the Government with a strong chance of being enacted because the government will table sufficient time for it to be debated.
   - Jeremy Hunt brought forward the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to reorganise the NHS.
   b) The Government can also rely on Whips to encourage support for the bill in the Commons.
   c) If the proposed legislation was in the government’s election manifesto, the House of Lords will not block or delay it according to the Salisbury Convention.
3. Private Member Bills
   a) Members of both houses can introduce Private Member Bills under 3 ways:
   - i) Ballot (a ballot is held at the beginning of each parliament in which MPs can put forward proposals for a Private Members Bill. 20 bills enter the ballot and the top 7 are debated).
   - ii) Ten Minute Rule (MPs can put forward their proposals for a bill in a speech of 10 minutes, but this is less successful).
   - iii) Presentation (MPs formally presents a Private Members Bill to the House of Commons).
   b) So few Private Member Bills become law shows the insignificance of backbenchers.
   - Limited time is given to debate on Friday when most MPs are returning to their constituency with insufficient numbers present for a division (vote), which is necessary for the bill to progress.
   - EXAMPLE. Representation of the People (Young People’s Enfranchisement) Bill 2018 by Peter Kyle proposed reducing the voting age to 16, yet was not given enough time and died.
   c) Hostile MPs might filibuster to talk out a bill.
   - EXAMPLE. John Nicholson MP introduced the Sexual Offences Pardons Bill 2016 (Turing Bill) after Alan Turing committed suicide after being prosecuted for homosexual acts, the bill would pardon living and dead men for same-sex historic sexual offences. Justice Minister Sam Gyimah spoke at length and his filibustering led to the bill’s failure due to the lack of time.
   d) If Private Member Bills have cross-party support and the government look favourably upon it has potential.
   - EXAMPLE. International Development (Gender Equality) Act 2014, introduced by Bill Cash MP requires overseas development and humanitarian assistance by the UK to include a commitment to promote gender equality.
   - EXAMPLE. The Homelessness Reduction Act 2018, introduced by Bob Blackman MP requires local councils to provide more support for people threatened with homelessness.
   - EXAMPLE. Abortion Act 1967 was introduced by David Steel (liberal) MP and given tactic support by the government.
   - EXAMPLE. Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965 was introduced by Sydney Silverman (labour) MP.
   - EXAMPLE. Voyeurism (Offences) Act 2019 amends the Sexual Offences Act 2003 to make upskirting a specific offence. It was introduced by Lib Dem MP Wera Hobhouse with only Tory MP Christopher Chope objected the bill as an objection to the parliamentary procedure rather than to the bill itself.
4. Private Bill
   a) Uncommon, yet it is sponsored by an organisation or local authority with the intention of changing the law as it affects that organisation.
   - A group have the right to petition Parliament.
   - EXAMPLE. The London Local Authorities and Transport for London Act 2013 introduced new powers for dealing with obstructions caused by builders and road users in the capital.
5. Hybrid Bill
   a) Has characteristics of both public and private bills.
   - Proposes changes to the law which would affect the general public and certain groups or areas.

Question 20

What are the main roles of Backbench MPs?

Answer 20

BACKBENCH MPs

1. Representing the interests of the constituents
   a) To achieve ‘redress of grievances’ for Constituents, MPs can ask questions in the chamber on their behalf.
   b) MPs often use end-of-day adjournment debates to raise questions.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2018, Sir Peter Bottomley MP used the opportunity of an adjournment debate to demand a full enquiry into the case of former police Sergeant Gurpal Virdi, who had been taken to court over a historic case of sexual abuse and acquitted.
2. Backbench Business Committee
   a) Established in 2010, providing backbench MPs with 35 days in a year in which they can control Parliamentary business.
   b) MPs can raise questions for debate.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2015, Harvey’s Law, which obliges the Highway Agency to notify the owners of pets who are killed on the roads.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2018, some of the debates the committee included the importance of refugee family reunions, perinatal mental illness and forced adoption in the UK.
3. E-petitions
   a) In 2015, a petitions committee was created over the task of scheduling debates on petitions.
   - Most e-petitions have reached 100,000 signatures.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2018, the committee arranged debates on the abolition of the House of Lords, changing the GCSE English Literature exam from a closed book to an open book assessment and banning the sale of animal fur in the UK.
4. Raise and supporting personal issues
   a) EXAMPLE. Michelle Thompson MP publicly spoke at a debate on the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in 2016 about being raped in order to help break the taboo about sharing information.
   b) EXAMPLE. Luciana Berger MP has campaigned to raise awareness of food poverty in the UK, producing a film, Breadline Britain, and secured the first Parliamentary debate on food banks. As a victim of antisemitism, she has spoken out against the rife problem in the Labour Party. She joined Change UK (The Independent Group) in Feb 2019.
5. Backbench rebellions
   a) Rebellions have increased in recent times.
   - EXAMPLE. Coalition backbenchers (2010 - 2015) rebelled 35% of the time whereas equivalent figures under Labour (2005 - 2010) were 28%.
6. Initiate Private Member Bills in both houses
   a) EXAMPLE. Lord Hayward has spoken frequently in the House of Lords about excessive plastic packaging, as well as scrutinising the Government through committees.

Question 21

What factors determine the influence of Backbencher MPs?

Answer 21

LIMITS ON BACKBENCH INFLUENCE

1. Size of the Parliamentary Majority
   a) Tony Blair won landslide Parliamentary majorities in the 1997 and 2001 general elections.
   - He survived large backbench rebellions.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2003, 139 labour MPs voted against involvement in the Iraq War but Blair still won.
   - Thinning of the majority to 66 MPs in 2005 led to failings in Parliament to introduce 90-day detention for terrorist suspects when 49 Labour MPs voted against the government.
   b) If the government has a small or non-existent Parliamentary majority then backbenchers will be more influential than Whips.
   - EXAMPLE. After Theresa lost her majority in the 2017 election, she had to ‘manage’ rather than ‘lead’ Brexit in order to create as much cross-party support for her strategy as possible.
2. Public Bill Committees
   a) Although opposition backbench MPs can propose legislation, the government normally has a majority on these committees and often will use it as a position of strength to introduce their own amendments.
3. Power of Patronage, party ties and party whips reinforce loyalty.

Question 22

To what extent do Backbenchers play an important role in the House of Commons?

Answer 22

BACKBENCHERS PLAYING AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS

1. Important Role
   a) Backbenchers on select committees play an important role in scrutinising the work of government departments.
   b) The Liaison Committee (chair of all select committees) holds the PM accountable for policy development and implementation.
   c) MPs can provide ‘redress of public grievances’ for their constituents by raising cases in the House of Commons.
   d) MPs can raise public awareness of issues such as growing antisemitism in the Labour Party (Luciana Berger) and speaking out against Rape (Michelle Thompson).
   e) Backbenchers can introduce Private Member Bills. Some, such as Dan Byles’ House of Lords Reform Act 2014, can be significant.
   f) The Backbench Business Committee has provided MPs with more control over the Parliamentary agenda, enabling MPs to choose more topics for debate.
   g) MPs can dismiss the executive with a vote of no confidence (1979, Callaghan).
   h) MPs can make amendments to legislation on Public Bills Committees.
   i) MPs have an important legitimising role; deciding whether to commit British forces to military action and whether to agree to an early dissolution of Parliament.
   j) Since Backbenchers are not bound by collective ministerial responsibility, they can oppose their whips over legislation.
   k) When the government has a small or non-existent parliamentary majority, MPs can exact concessions from the executive in order to win their support for the legislation.
   l) If the government is not confident it has the support of enough Backbenchers, it can drop legislation.
   - EXAMPLE. In 2005, having lost a Commons vote when 49 Labour MPs disobeyed a three-line whip, the Blair government abandoned proposals to allow terrorist suspects to be held for 90 days without charge.
   m) EXAMPLE. By March 2019, backbenchers had defeated Theresa May’s Brexit deal 3 times.
   - MPs also voted to reject a no-deal Brexit, as well as temporarily taking control of the Brexit agenda to see if they could agree on a way forward.
   - The House of Lords proposed 15 amendments to the Withdrawal Bill, scrutinising it for 160 hours in the Lords and 112 hours in the Commons.
2. Irrelevant Role
   a) The government can ignore the advice of select committees.
   - The Foreign Affairs Select Committee advised against any military intervention in Syria in 2015.
   b) MPs are expected to obey the party whip. Ambitious MPs who aspire to a frontbench position can become ‘lobby fodder’.
   c) A vote of no confidence can only be called in exceptional circumstances when the government is vulnerable to defeat.
   d) Public Bill Committees are whipped and so opposition amendments are unlikely to be accepted.
   e) Most Private Member Bills fail because of insufficient Parliamentary time being made available for them.
   f) In spite of the establishment of the Backbench Business Committee, the government still dominates most of the Parliamentary agenda.
   g) The governments increasing use of secondary (delegated) legislation to change laws has negatively impacted on MPs legislative function.
   h) The rise of. political activism among Labour Constituency parties has meant that MPs are increasingly expected to represent the wishes of their local party in the House of Commons rather than the Burkean principle that they should act according to their conscience.
   i) In exceptional circumstances, the Royal Prerogative allows the PM to commit British forces to military action without a Parliamentary vote.
   j) Although MPs can initiate debates and vote in favour if e-petitions, this does not mean that the government has got to act on or support these proposals.
   k) If the government has a large parliamentary majority it will have an inbuilt majority or backbench support.
   - It will thus be able to survive even large backbench rebellions.

Question 23

What is the Opposition?

Answer 23

OPPOSITION

• The second largest party in the House of Commons constitutes Her Majesty’s Most Loyal Opposition.
• The opposition Front Bench shadows the government Front Bench and scrutinises its decisions.
• It uses its role in Parliament to persuade the electorate that it is a potential government-in-waiting.

Question 24

What is the role of the Opposition and how may it achieve its objectives?

Answer 24

ROLE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE OPPOSITION

1. Role
   a) Ensure that the government justifies its legislative programme and executive decisions.
   b) Create a public debate by providing reasoned arguments on why they cannot support the decisions of the government.
   c) In the case of the biggest opposition party, known as Her Majesty’s Most Loyal Opposition, be prepared to provide an alternative government-in-waiting in case the PM seeks an early dissolution (2017).
   - EXAMPLE. William Hague failed to achieve this in 2001, with little impression on the general public.
   d) Use their various front bench spokespeople to focus on the government department that they are shadowing, exposing any failures of policy implementation.
   e) In the case of the leader of the opposition, use the opportunity of the weekly PMQT to present themselves as having the political stature to be the PM-in-waiting.
2. Achieving Objectives
   a) 20 Opposition Days in the Parliamentary Calendar where opposition parties can choose the subjects for debates in the Commons.
   - Important opportunity to make the government debate issues which the opposition believes are important.
   - The main opposition party chooses the motion for debate on 17 of them.
   - EXAMPLE. Only one time since 1978, have opposition day motions been successful when a Liberal Democrat motion condemning Gordon Brown refusal to guarantee UK residency rights to the Gurkha veterans was passed by 267-246 in 2009, with 27 Labour MPs voting against the government.
   b) Opposition MPs scrutinise proposed government legislation in Public Bill Committees and offer amendments.
   c) Shadow ministers expose the mistakes and failures of the opponent.
   - A strongly interrogative shadow minister has an important role in highlighting the failings of government policy development and implementation.
   - EXAMPLE. After claims that the Home Office was seeking to deport immigrants who had not got appropriate documentation (Windrush Generation), led to the Shadow Home Secretary, Diane Abbott putting against a case to Amber Rudd in 2018 (who resigned in April 2018).
   d) If the government have a small/non-existent parliamentary majority, opposition parties can work closely with more independent-minded peers to uncover failures of government policy and to delay policy.
   - EXAMPLE. The lathe number of amendments which the Lords made to the EU (Withdrawal) Bill helped to encourage opposition within the Commons to a hard Brexit.
   e) In Parliamentary debate (budget and propose government legislation), opposition parties play an important role in forcing the government to justify its policies.

Question 25

What is the purpose and nature of Ministerial Question?

Answer 25

PURPOSE AND NATURE OF MINISTERIAL QUESTIONS

1. From Monday to Thursday an hour of Parliamentary business time is set aside for oral ministerial questions in the House of Commons.
   a) This is only 30 mins in the House of Lords.
2. Questions are directed at ministers rather than to a specific department.
   a) Ministers are given notice of oral questions so they can prepare with the assistance of civil servants.
   b) Ministers must respond to written questions within a week if they are in the Commons.
   - They must respond within 2 weeks in the Lords.
3. According to the Ministerial Code of Conduct, they should be as open as possible with Parliament and the public.

Question 26

What is the purpose and nature of Prime Minister Question Time?

Answer 26

PURPOSE AND NATURE OF PRIME MINISTERS QUESTION TIME

1. PMQT is hosted every Wednesday between 12 noon and 12:30 pm to respond to questions from the chamber.
   a) It attracts considerable press adn television reporting.
2. An important opportunity for the PM to be held accountable for government policy.
   a) The opposition leader is able to ask 6 questions, so it is important that they both present themselves as effectively as possible.
   - The leader of the next biggest party is given 2 questions to ask and then MPs have an opportunity to ask their own questions.
   b) The questions on the government’s side are ‘planted questions’ which present the PM in a good light.
   - Often the PM takes credit for the success of government policy.
   c) Provides an important spotlight on the record of the PM, exposing faults in their administration.
   - Interrogations hold the executive to account, unlike the Presidential system.
3. Theatrical Politics
   a) Breeding ground for premade insults with conflicting characters.
   - EXAMPLE. David Cameron and Corbyn often clashed, with Cameron attacking his opponent’s suit.
   b) Orchestrated attacks
   - EXAMPLE. In 2012, Cameron’s Parliamentary private secretary, Desmond Swayne, had orchestrated heckling of the Labour Leader, Ed Milliband, and had asked Conservative MPs to create a ‘protective wall of sound’ around the PM when he faced opposition.
   - EXAMPLE. Windrush question in 2018 that the Landing Cards were destroyed in 2009 under a Labour Government was met with hysteria on the Conservative bench.