1. Understanding the parliamentary landscape
SEEFA
June 2016
UK Parliament Outreach and Engagement Service

2. Outreach and Engagement Service
A service from the Houses of Parliament
Politically neutral
Aim is to increase the public’s knowledge and engagement with work and processes of Parliament
Not an alternative to MPs

3. Session objectives By the end of this session, you will know:
The composition of Parliament
How MPs and Lords question Government
How debates work
How laws are made
How Select Committees work
Stop at Your Voice

4. What is Parliament? House of Commons House of Lords The Monarch
Parliament comprises of three things. Two institutions and one person – the Queen
The House of Commons
The democratically elected house of Parliament. This is the one that is voted in every five years when there is an election.
The House of Lords
The second chamber of Parliament., not elected.
The Queen
The Queen is the Head of State. She opens Parliament every year and asks the party that wins a general election to become the government. The queen also has to agree all the laws that the rest of parliament votes for, but she always does.
It takes money from taxpayers, which the government uses to carry out its work. (All government money comes from the people when they pay taxes like income tax, which is paid out of people’s wages and VAT, which is an extra cost added to things you buy, which the government takes in tax. It uses that money to run services like hospitals and schools, to pay soldiers, build roads. )
It checks that government is doing a good job – which we call scrutiny - through MPs and Members of the House of Lords asking questions, which the government have to answer.
It also debates issues that are important and that the people care about.

6. The House of Commons The democratically elected chamber of Parliament
650 MPs, all are elected at
Least every 5 years
Approximately 70,000 people
per constituency
The House of Commons is perhaps the part of Parliament we are all most familiar with as we are used to seeing the green benches on the news.
It is the democratically elected chamber of Parliament which means that we, the British public, are responsible for the political composition of the House, so you only have yourselves to blame.
Each MP represents an average of approximately 70,000 potential voters, in the 650 parliamentary constituencies. plus everyone else who is in their area who cannot vote (under 18s etc). There are 650 MPs
MPs represent everyone in their constituency – regardless of their political affiliations and whether they voted for them or not: it doesn’t matter whether you support them, like them voted for them or voted at all, they are your representative in Parliament.
The number of seats is decided by the Boundary Commission – an independent body which recommends the boundaries regarding Parliamentary constituencies.
At the 2010 general election the number of seats increased from 646 to 650 to reflect the growing population.
The party, or parties, with the largest number of seats in the House of Commons forms the Government (which remember is different from Parliament).

7. The House of Lords
The House of Lords is the second chamber of Parliament, also known as ‘the revising House’
There are 800 Members in total (173 are Crossbenchers)
Members include:
685 Life Peers
89 Hereditary Peers
26 Bishops
On average, 470 attend
Life peers – most members of the Lords are life peers - appointed for their lifetime only. The Queen formally appoints life peers on the advice and recommendation of the Prime Minister or the independent House of Lords Appointments Commission.
Elected hereditary peers - the general right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords was ended in 1999 by the House of Lords Act. Ninety-two hereditary peers were elected internally to remain: these are known within the House of Lords as ‘excepted hereditary peers’. Excluded hereditary peers retain their peerages and titles (which are passed on to their children) and may stand in by-elections for membership of the House of Lords to replace an excepted hereditary peer who has died.
Life peers can be appointed via political lists of ad hoc House of Commons announcements.
Political lists – these are Lords appointed to boost the strengths of the three main parties. Regular attendance in the House is expected, usually on the frontbench as a spokesperson or whip.
Archbishops and bishops - a limited number of 26 Church of England archbishops and bishops sits in the House, passing their membership on to the next most senior bishop when they retire. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York traditionally receive life peerages on retirement.
Members of the Lords do not have specific constituents to represent or constituency issues to deal with.
No single political party has a majority in the House of Lords: the Government, opposition and crossbencher groups maintain roughly equal sizes.
Whereas the MPs are in the Commons because they represent an area, Peers sit in the House of Lords because of their expertise and experience in a subject, so if you are interested in something and can find a Peer who is interested in the same thing, why not contact them and ask them to raise your issue in Parliament?

8. Contacting your MP
Your MP’s contact details will be on the Parliament website:
You can call the House of Commons Enquiry Service on
Or at your town hall or local library
Many MPs will have a contact address and number in the constituency
Register of Members interests

9. Contacting Members of the Lords
You can call House of Lords External Communications on
Identify Peers who will support your campaign
Biographies of all Peers are available at
Members of the House of Lords do not have constituencies, so in theory, you can contact any member

10. All-Party Parliamentary Groups
Cross-party
MPs and Members of the House of Lords
Based around common interest
Not involved in formal decision making

11. Parliamentary Questions
Written or spoken questions asked by MPs and Lords, directed at the Government
Parliamentary Questions
In order to get a question asked, you will need to contact either an MP or a member of the House of Lords.
Questions are one of the tools which both MPs and Members of the House of Lords use to hold the Government to account to:
Obtain information – stats, policies, positions
Press for action
Raise constituency issues
Challenge Government policy
Must have factual basis and relate to the running of a Government department.
Two types of questions:
Written questions are quite literally ‘written’ and will receive a written reply from the relevant Government department.
Oral questions are taken in the chamber and their will be a Minister from the relevant Government department to answer the question.
With oral questions, there are also what is known as a supplementary question – this is an opportunity, after the Minister has answered the question, for the MP to ask another question.
The value of this is that the Minister won’t know what the second question is (as the Ministers will have received notice of all questions and have briefing notes prepared by their researchers).

12. Oral questions to Ministers
MPs “table” questions in advance at Table Office
Questions are selected by “shuffle”, numbered and put on the order paper
Successful members called to ask their question, then ask supplementary
Other MPs can ask follow-up questions
All relevant ministers are present

13. Home Office Questions – Monday 6 July 2015

15. Parliamentary Debates
Westminster Hall debates, in the House of Commons; Questions for Short Debate in the House of Lords
Opposition Day debates
Back-Bench Business debates
General debates

16. Questions?

17. Select Committees
Scrutinise specific areas of work and Government Departments
Groups and individuals can submit evidence to inquiries
Relevant Government Department
must respond to the reports they produce
Select Committees
An inquiry will begin with the committee in question announcing the subject of an inquiry, and making a call to any groups or organisations with an interest in the inquiry subject to submit written evidence. In making the call for evidence, the committee will ask a number of questions that it wants groups to answer in their evidence. The call for evidence will also come with a deadline.
After the deadline for written evidence, the committee will then call a selected number of people to give oral evidence in Parliament. We should emphasise the majority of people that submit written evidence do not get called to an oral evidence session due to the sheer number of people submitting evidence.
The written and oral evidence will then be collated, which summarises the evidence received, and makes a number of recommendations. The report is then sent to the relevant Government department who will make a formal response.
They are a great way for groups and organisations to give their views and experiences directly to Parliament.
You may occasionally hear news reports refer to ‘an influential group of MPs’. These are usually Select Committees. They can often have a direct influence on Government policies.
House of Lords Select Committees draw on the experience of their members to conduct internationally respected investigations into specialist public and policy issues.
Unlike House of Commons committees, House of Lords committees take a broader, issues-focused perspective (eg communications, economic affairs, science and technology), not limited to the work of particular Government departments.
Membership
The majority of Commons Select Committee Chairs are now elected by their fellow MPs.
This applies to departmental committees and the Environmental Audit, Political and Constitutional Reform, Procedure, Public Administration and Public Accounts committees.
The other Committee members are nominated by their party after internal party elections.

18. Select Committees
In the Commons, Select Committees typically have eleven members
The Chair of the Committee is elected by MPs from across the House
Committees are most effective when they work by consensus to produce a report
Committees scrutinise Government work in detail
Select Committees
An inquiry will begin with the committee in question announcing the subject of an inquiry, and making a call to any groups or organisations with an interest in the inquiry subject to submit written evidence. In making the call for evidence, the committee will ask a number of questions that it wants groups to answer in their evidence. The call for evidence will also come with a deadline.
After the deadline for written evidence, the committee will then call a selected number of people to give oral evidence in Parliament. We should emphasise the majority of people that submit written evidence do not get called to an oral evidence session due to the sheer number of people submitting evidence.
The written and oral evidence will then be collated, which summarises the evidence received, and makes a number of recommendations. The report is then sent to the relevant Government department who will make a formal response.
They are a great way for groups and organisations to give their views and experiences directly to Parliament.
You may occasionally hear news reports refer to ‘an influential group of MPs’. These are usually Select Committees. They can often have a direct influence on Government policies.
House of Lords Select Committees draw on the experience of their members to conduct internationally respected investigations into specialist public and policy issues.
Unlike House of Commons committees, House of Lords committees take a broader, issues-focused perspective (eg communications, economic affairs, science and technology), not limited to the work of particular Government departments.
Membership
The majority of Commons Select Committee Chairs are now elected by their fellow MPs.
This applies to departmental committees and the Environmental Audit, Political and Constitutional Reform, Procedure, Public Administration and Public Accounts committees.
The other Committee members are nominated by their party after internal party elections.

20. Questions?

22. Private Members’ Bills
MPs and Lords can introduce their own Bills
In the Commons, MPs can bring in a Bill through the 10-minute rule
MPs can also enter the Private Members Bill ballot every session
If they are in the first 20 or so names, their Bill we be given debating time on a sitting Friday
Members of both Houses can also simply present new Bills, but they are not guaranteed any debating time

23. Legislation
Prior to Parliament, proposed legislation may go through various stages:
Green Papers and White Papers
Government consultation processes
Pre-legislative Committees

24. Pre-legislative scrutiny
Draft Bills are considered by ad hoc or Select Committees before formal stages.
Committees carry out full inquiry on Bill and report back to Government.
Any inquiries will be listed in the draft
Bills section of

25. Bill is introduced to the House; a formality
Amendments can be proposed. Detailed examination of the Bill in a Public Bill Committee (knives may be used)
First opportunity for debate of the main principles of the Bill. Vote on whether the Bills proceeds
Further amendment to the content of the Bill. All MPs may speak and vote; Speaker selects amendments for discussion
Final chance for the Commons to debate the contents of a Bill, but no amendments. Vote on whether the Bill is approved
Bill is introduced to the House; a formality
First reading – the title of the Bill is read out by the Member sponsoring the Bill
Second reading – debate on the principles of the Bill. Many Private Members Bills only make it to Second Reading.
Committee Stage – knives are time limits which can be imposed by the Programming Sub-Committee, e.g. The Committee will only have 3 days to consider amendments, or they must reach clause 14 by the end of a certain day... Richard to talk about Committees later.
Report Stage – back to the whole House
Third Reading – No more amendments

26. Bill is introduced to the House; a formality
Amendments can be proposed. Detailed examination of the Bill in a Committee of the Whole House (any Member). No time limit.
First opportunity for debate of the main principles of the Bill. List of Speakers is opened. Vote on whether the Bills proceeds
Further line by line consideration of the Bill. All amendments can be discussed and any Member can take part.
Final chance to debate and change the Bill. Amendments can be made. Vote on whether the Bill is approved
Bill is introduced to the House; a formality
Second reading – list of speakers is opened – good place to see which Lords are interested in that Bill.
Committee stage – any member can speak and there is no time limit (key differences from Commons)
Third reading – can still make amendments to the Bill.

27. Monarch's agreement to make the Bill into an Act and is a formality
Monarch's agreement to make the Bill into an Act and is a formality. When Royal Assent has been given, the announcement is usually made in both Houses by the Lord Speaker in the Lords and the Speaker in the Commons
‘Ping-pong’ . Both Houses must agree on the exact wording of a Bill before it can become an Act of Parliament
Ping pong - If the Commons makes amendments to the Bill, the Lords must consider them and either agree or disagree to the amendments or make alternative proposals. If the Commons disagrees with any Lords amendments, or makes alternative proposals, then the Bill is sent back to the Lords. A Bill may go back and forth between each House until both Houses reach agreement.

28. English votes for English laws
It’s not only about England
If parts of a Government Bill are only about England or England and Wales, those parts go through an extra stage in the House of Commons.
MPs from the nations affected must approve those parts of the Bill between report stage and third reading.
If the Speaker decides that a Government Bill or a part of a Government Bill in the House of Commons is only about England, England and Wales, or England, Wales and Northern Ireland, it will be considered a little differently.
Between report stage and third reading, there is an extra stage called a Legislative Grand Committee. Only MPs who represent constituencies in the nations that the Bill is about can be members of the Legislative Grand Committee. If the Committee pass the Bill, it goes to Third reading. If they reject all or part of the Bill, it goes to “reconsideration”, which is a bit like having a second report stage. If the Legislative Grand Committee still don’t want to pass the Bill, the Government have to take out the parts the Committee have rejected or the Bill can’t continue through Parliament.

30. Questions?

31. Hansard and Library Briefings
Hansard - searchable near-verbatim reports of all speeches from House of Commons and House of Lords
Produced on rolling basis – three hours from Chamber to publication
House of Commons and House of Lords Library prepare research briefings that are available online

32. Where can I get information?
Commons Enquiry Service
Lords Information Office
UK Parliament Outreach and Engagement Service
Feedback forms!