Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative institution in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories (it alone has parliamentary sovereignty). At its head is the Sovereign; it is bicameral, including an Upper House, called the House of Lords, and a Lower House, called the House of Commons. The House of Lords includes two different types of members—the Lords Spiritual (the senior clergy of the Church of England) and the Lords Temporal (members of the Peerage); it is a wholly unelected body. The House of Commons, on the other hand, is a democratically elected chamber. The House of Lords and the House of Commons meet in separate chambers in the Palace of Westminster (commonly known as the "Houses of Parliament"), in the British capital, London (more precisely, in the borough known as the City of Westminster). By constitutional convention, all government ministers, including the Prime Minister are drawn exclusively from the House of Commons or House of Lords.

Procedure

Each of the two Houses of Parliament is presided over by a Speaker. In the House of Lords, the Lord Chancellor, a member of the Cabinet, is the ex officio Speaker. Where there is a vacancy in the office, a Speaker may be appointed by the Crown. Deputy Speakers, who take the place of an absent Lord Chancellor, are also chosen by the Crown.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The House of Commons has the right to elect its own Speaker. Theoretically, the approval of the Sovereign is required before the election becomes valid, but it is, by modern conventions, always granted. The Speaker's place may be taken by three deputies, known as the Chairman, First Deputy Chairman and Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means. (They take their name from the Committee of Ways and Means, of which they were once presiding officers, but which no longer exists.)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In general, the Lord Chancellor's influence as Speaker is very limited, whilst the powers belonging to the Speaker of the House of Commons are vast. Decisions on points of order and on the disciplining of unruly members are made by the whole body in the Upper House, but by the Speaker alone in the Lower House. Speeches in the House of Lords are addressed to the House as a whole (using the words "My Lords"), but those in the House of Commons are addressed to the Speaker alone (using the words "Mr Speaker" or "Madam Speaker").

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Both Houses may decide questions with voice voting; members shout out "Aye" and "No" (in the House of Commons), or "Content" and "Not-Content" (in the House of Lords), and the presiding officer declares the result. The pronouncement of the Lord Chancellor or Speaker may be challenged, and a recorded vote (known as a division) demanded. (The Speaker of the House of Commons may choose to overrule a frivolous request for a division, but the Lord Chancellor does not possess an equivalent power.) In each House, a division requires members to file into one of the two lobbies alongside the Chamber; their names are recorded by clerks, and their votes are counted as they exit the lobbies to re-enter the Chamber. The Speaker of the House of Commons, who is expected to remain non-partisan, does not cast a vote except in the case of a tie; the Lord Chancellor, however, votes along with the other Lords.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

(For further details on procedure, see the separate articles on the House of Lords and the House of Commons.)

Related Topics:
House of Lords - House of Commons

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~