Parliament Flashcards
Alec Douglas Home
Last member of the Lords to become an MP in 1963 resigned his peerage and fought and won a by-election so he could sit in the Commons as an MP
Frank Field
Stood as an independent having won as a Labour candidate in a safe Labour
seat - he lost
2024 women in Labour Party
104 vs 96 men!
Tory men v women 2024 (remember Tory MP numbers have dropped to 348 in 2024)
260 vs 88
2019: 278 vs 87
life peers as of May 2023
664 - most are tory
Hereditary peers
92 - prior to 1999 was 700!
How many Church of England bishops?
26
Name of first female MP ever
Nancy Astor in 1919
Are BAME underrepresented?
Yes - 10% MPs vs 18% of population
Are LGBTQ underrepresented?
Surprisingly no - 6% vs 2% of population
Lindsay Hoyle
Elected in 2019 and 2024 scandal over allowing Labour to put an amendment to an SNP notion surrounding Gaza
Accused of breaking long-standing convention rules - seen as partisan towards labour
John Bercow
Speaker who suspended veteran Labour MP Dennis Skinner for calling PM Cameron ‘dodgy Dave’
Michael Martin
Forced to resign over expenses scandal
Penny Mordaunt
Current Commons Leader
Nadine Dorries + Matt Hancock
Tory MP had the whip withdrawn after appearing on I’m a Celeb
Same thing happened to Hancock
21 Tory rebels
in 2019 had the whip withdrawn after they voted to stop a no deal Brexit
Julian Lewis
Had the whip withdrawn July 2020 for as chair of Intelligence and Security Committee working with Labour MPs for his own advantage
Andy McDonald
Labour MP brought back into the party in March after having the whip withdrawn for language used at a pro-Palestine rally
Julian Knight
Tory whip withdrawn in 2022 after an allegation of sexual assault
Corbyn
Whip withdrawn in 2020
over antisemitism
Standing as an independent in 2024
Sunday trading bill
was the last time (1986) a bill had been rejected at the second stage
Democratic audit
Found 63% of all MPs brought some sought of relevant expertise to public bill committees between 2000 - 2010, and 87% of govt amendments come from these committees
vs only 0.5% of non-govt amendments in committees succeed
Gina Miller
Miller v Sec of State for exiting the EU- article 50 cannot be invoked without parliamentary approval
Miller v Johnson - cannot prorogue parliament
Theresa May Brexit
deal rejected twice
First time a mega 432 ‘no’ to 202 ‘aye’
FTPA 2011
repealed in 2022 - allows govt to call early elections
Secondary legislation (minister-made law) example
Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 allows the govt to add new drugs to the list of banned substances
Private Members’ Bill example:
Abortion Act 1967 and the abolition of capital punishment
Ballot bills + example
Also, how many ballot bills became law 2022-23? (give one example)
are a form of PMB
65 hours set aside for 13 fridays
backbenchers put in a ballot and 20 names are picked out
higher-than-average chance of becoming law as long as they aren’t controversial
EXAMPLE = Turing Bill in 2016 that would have pardoned all men living with UK convictions for same-sex offences committed before 1967 - unfortunately the govt withdrew its initial support when a govt minister spoke on the matter for 25 minutes
16 - Carer’s Leave Act 2023 and Child Support Act 2023
Chris Chope
2018 the Conservative Chope single-handedly blocked a bill that would have outlawed ‘upskirting’ - was HUGELY criticised
Luckily a govt-backed bill on the same matter was passed after
Ten minute rule bills usually fail but what one passed?
The Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act 2017
What is a presentation bill? What one was successful ?
a bill formally presented during a Friday sitting only after ALL ballot bills -
no speech or debate, usually just to address discrete non-controversial policy issues and to resolve anomalies in the law
2 Brexit Acts: Cooper-Letwin and Benn Acts were implemented via presenting bills because MPs took control of parliament’s agenda from the government in order to prevent a no-deal Brexit
Cross bench opposition to the
privatisation of some of England’s forests forced the govt to abandon its plans entirely
Own party pressure for Blair’s government to pass the
Corporate Manslaughter Act 2006
Nick Boles
Burkean - represented a leave constituency but personally supported the remain campaign
Stephen Lloyd
Delegate - a Lib Dem for Eastbourne promised to support Brexit in the Commons if re-elected in 2017 to honour the national and constituency vote DESPITE him personally supporting the Remain campaign
Frank Field
Mandate - lost his seat in 2019 when he became an independent
How many Labour MPs resigned over Blair’s invasion of Iraq?
139
How many emergency debates took place in 2017-19?
22 - including Brexit and rollout of universal credit
Backbench business committee
recent development set up in 2010 - decides the topic for debate for 1 day a week in Westminster Hall and gives backbenchers more scope to shape Commons business - much different atmosphere to main chamber debates
Another recent development: Westminster Hall debates + Ben Bradley example + 2023 example
4 days a week
2020 Mansfield MP Ben Bradley led a debate on educational attainment of white WC boys
2023 - debate on hate crime against the LGBTQ+ community led by Stephen Doughty
In 2024 there was even an inquiry into the James Bulger murder case
What are Mondays reserved for?
Discussion and petitions (including e-petitions)
Had to have over 100k signatures - in March 2024 an e petition successfully achieve this with 250k and was able to bring a debate about why LGBT content should NOT be removed from the relationships education curriculum
Height of COVID several petitions calling for greater government action
Calls to abolish NHS staff having to pay for parking
Public Bill Committees example
Committee stage of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 that dealt with the sensitive topic of electronic surveillance by the security services added additional safeguards to protect journalists
Select committees
2013 parl defined their role as to launch investigations, call witnesses and check taxpayers money is being spent efficiently
Public Accounts Committee is the oldest committee (1857) - role is to check if the govt is effectively spending money e.g. HS2 and cost of uni tech colleges
28 in 2020
Health Sec Committee chaired by Jeremy Hunt in 2020
Lords committee
least significant
COVID Committee
EU Committee
Usually 4 new ones per year
Stephen Timms (Labour)
going back to select committee he was an opposition party chair for the Department of Work and Pensions in 2019
COVID-19 furlough scheme select committee
was urged by the opposition party in the Treasury Select Committee
Sir Philip Green: select committees
was questioned over the BHS pensions scandal
Caroline Nokes: Select committees
the former immigration minister appeared visibly irritated when questioned about problems faced by highly skilled migrants in the UK - was later accused of misleading parliament with her answers
However in 2020 Nokes was elected chair of the Women and Equalities Committee showing that one bad performance is not necessarily a barrier to promotion elsewhere
Ofsted Amanda Spielman
Since 2007 select committees have had the ability to review major ministerial appointments of those heading quasi-government agencies
MPs on the education select committee rejected proposed head of Ofsted Amanda Spielman after a lacklustre performance - however she was still appointed
what percentage of select committee recommendations accepted by the government?
40%
Transport select committee: select committees and civil servants
civil servants summoned to hearings and must be honest
In Sep 2019 the Transport SC issued a report criticising the Department for Transport for failing to take action on pavement parking that had a negative impact on people with visual or mobility impairments - Dep responded saying they would consult on whether to give local authorities approval to tackle such issues
Home Affairs Committee
Rose in profile from 2008 to 2012
Press mentions went from 295 to 2,033
Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament
set up in 1994 and oversees MI5 MI6 and GCHQ
role of the opposition
20 opposition days set aside where they choose the topic for debate
17 go to offices opposition and 3 for 2nd opposition (SNP) - use Lindsay Hoyle 2024 scandal as example
What issues did labour raise in 2018 vs 2023?
2018 -Grenfell tower fire and NHS privatisation
2023 - mental health, issues of sewage, safety of school buildings
Gurkhas
Gordon Brown leadership an opposition motion to allow Gurkhas to settle in the UK was passed when 27 Labour MPs rebelled and supported opposition parties
What proposal did the Tories drop during the coalition with the Lib Dems due to intra-party opposition?
Proposals to lower inheritance tax
What do the opposition receive to help with policy research and scrutiny?
Short money
Diane Abbott
when part of the shadow cabinet as shadow home secretary she appeared on LBC in 2017 and was criticised for her weak grasp on numbers and details in relation to the police
What bill during the public bill committee stage had 2303 speeches in May 2022?
the Online Safety bill - amendments made required Ofcom to provide guidance on issues of suicide, self-harm, eating disorders and abuse to service providers on content they should consider to be harmful to children
The Act was passed October 2023
What did Labour use their opposition day in 2022 as a tactic for?
Getting Liz Truss to resign- used their opposition day to ban new fracking, which Truss opposed, and 40 Tory MPs failed to back Truss
What former Tory MP joined Reform UK in March 2024 after being suspended over Islamophobia?
Lee Anderson - becoming the 37th MP to change party allegiance during this term
Used to be a Labour councillor, then became a conservative MP in 2019
Scandals included him telling asylum seekers to fuck off back to France
Who left SNP in 2023 over claims of mistreatment and bulling?
Lisa Cameron
Who had the whip withdrawn in 2020 but continues to sit as an independent?
Jeremy Corbyn
