Divisions in the House of Commons
Divisions are the main form of voting in the House of Commons. This briefing paper describes how it works and how it developed.
Resignation from the House of Commons
Under a Resolution of the House of 2 March 1624, Members of Parliament cannot directly resign their seat. This means that MPs wishing to resign their seat must be appointed to one of two paid offices of the Crown. These are the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds and the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. This briefing paper explains how this process works, and the historical background behind it.
Is this the longest parliamentary session ever?
On 7 May 2019 the current parliamentary session reached a striking landmark. It became the longest parliamentary session by sitting days since the English Civil War.
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Insight
Uncontested elections: Where and why do they take place?
In the 2019 local elections, the Electoral Reform Society has put the number of uncontested seats at 148, around 2% of the seats being contested.