P&E: The role and significance of backbenchers

Question 1

What are backbenchers?

Answer 1

Members of the House of Commons and the Lords who are not members of either the government front bench or the opposition front bench. They are not bound by collective ministerial responsibility and so are more independent, although they are expected to obey the party whip.

Question 2

What is parliamentary privilege and do backbenchers have it?

Answer 2

1. Dates back to the Bill of Rights in 1689
2. Means that parliamentarians are free to raise any issue they wish in Westminster without being prosecuted in courts for libel and defamation of characters.
3. Backbenchers in both houses are protected by this privilege.

Question 3

What is the role of backbenchers?

Answer 3

1. Represent the interests of their constituents
2. Scrutinise the work of the government
3. Consider the merits of legislation
4. Legitimise certain government decisions.

Question 4

How powerful are backbenchers in a government with a majority? (Tony Blair)

Answer 4

1. Tony Blair won a landslide in 1997 and 2001 and could survive even very large rebellions by backbenchers.
2. In 2003, 84 Labour MPs voted against the Iraq War but Blair still won.
3. However, in 2005 the majority dipped to 66 and failed to introduce 90-day detention for terrorist suspects when 49 Labour MPs voted against the government.

Question 5

How powerful are backbenchers in a government with a majority? (Keir Starmer)

Answer 5

1. 411 seats won
2. In July 2004, 7 MPs had the whip withdrawn due to voted to remove the 2 child benefit cap.

Question 6

How powerful are backbenchers in a government with no majority or a slim one?

Answer 6

1. Backbenchers will be at their most powerful because whips on both sides will need to make concessions to secure their support.
2. May lost her majority in 2017.
3. She had to ‘manage’ not ‘lead’ Brexit and had the worst defeat in the HoL.
4. Only when BJ won an 80 seat majority in December 2019 was he able to enact the EU withdrawal agreement.

Question 7

The influence of backbench MPs has increased in favour:

Answer 7

1. The greater independence of select committees made them more effective in scrutinising government.
2. Backbench Business Committee, enables them to choose more topics for debate.
3. Liaison Committee regularly holds the prime minister to account.
4. Have a increasingly important legitimising role since Iraq War 2003, voted on whether to support large-scale military expedition overseas.
5. Recent speakers have allowed MPs to ask more urgent questions.
6. Backbenchers were infleuntial in delyaing Johnson and May Brexit deal.
7. Erosion of backbencher support led to the resignation of Thatcher, May, Truss and Johnson.

Question 8

The influence of backbench MPs has increased against:

Answer 8

1. Select committees reports and scrutiny of the Liaison Committee have no binding power over the government.
2. Increasing the use of SIs has negatively impacted MPS legislative function.
3. It is only a convention that the HoC should be consulted on the deployment of British troops, Theresa May took military action in Syria 2018 and Rishi Sunak Houthis without Parliament.
4. Johnson repealed Fixed Term Parliament Act 2011, backbench have no influence over elections.
5. They only wielded significant influence because the second May and first Johnson government lacked a majority.
6. Depends on parliamentary arithemetic.