Research Briefing
Parliamentary privilege: current issues
This Note provides information on developments in parliamentary privilege since the last major review by the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege report in 1999.
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Research Briefing
Effectiveness of select committees
This note introduces the Liaison Committee's review "Select committee effectiveness, resources and powers" (November 2012) and the academic literature on the effectiveness of select committees
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Research Briefing
House of Commons Background Paper: Disciplinary and Penal Powers of the House of Commons
This Note provides information on rules covering disciplinary and penal powers of the House of Commons.
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Research Briefing
Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry
On 16 July 2012 a Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards was established by a motion in the House of Commons. The powers of the Commission are as set out by the motion. It is due to report its main recommendations on legislation action before 18 December 2012 before the Banking Reform Bill is published.
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Research Briefing
Opposition Day Debates: 1997-2010
Opposition day debates under Labour governments: 1997-2010
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Research Briefing
Speaker’s Conference on Parliamentary representation
This standard note provides a summary of the main recommendations of the Speaker’s Conference on Parliamentary representation which published its final report in January 2010.
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Research Briefing
Nominations to Select Committees
This note outlines the background to various proposals that have been made for changes to the way in which the members of select committees are nominated. It includes details of the proposals made by the Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons, which was established in July 2009 to advise on reforms to, inter alia, make select committee processes more democratic; and details of the recommendations adopted by the House. It also includes details of the initial operation of the new system of elected select committee chairs, and nominations, from June 2010 onwards.
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Research Briefing
House of Commons: providing information and access for the public
This note outlines some of the current initiatives in this area.
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Research Briefing
Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill: Lords stages
This Note summarises the Lords stages of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill 2010-11. It supplements Research Paper 10/55 which was produced for the Bill's second reading in the House of Commons and Research Paper 10/72 which summarises all the Commons stages of the Bill.
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Research Briefing
Parliamentary reform – a brief overview
This note briefly reviews committees that have (or have had) a role in developing reform proposals, then it briefly reviews recent reform proposals that have been implemented or are underway but not fully implemented. Finally it notes legislation before Parliament this Session that is likely to affect how the House of Commons operates.
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Research Briefing
Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill 2010-11: Commons Stages
This Paper summarises all Commons stages of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill 2010-11. It supplements Research Paper 10/55 which was produced for the Bill’s Second Reading and replaces Standard Note 5697 'Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill: Progress of the Bill'. No major changes were made during the passage of the Bill in the Commons, but the text of the referendum question was altered and legislative provision was made for the combination of polls on 5 May 2011.
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Research Briefing
Welsh Grand Committee
Some Members representing Welsh constituencies called for a meeting of the Welsh Grand Committee in order to discuss the impact on Wales of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill 2010. The Secretary of State, Cheryl Gillan, declined. This Note gives a very brief account of the business of the Committee and a list of its previous meetings.
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Research Briefing
The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill [Bill 63 of 2010-11]
This Paper has been prepared for the Second Reading debate in the House of Commons. The Bill seeks to enable the next general election to be fought under the Alternative Vote system, provided this change is endorsed in a referendum on 5 May 2011 and boundary changes have been made to reduce the size of the House of Commons to 600. New rules for the redistribution of seats are designed to give primacy to numerical equality in constituencies and regular redistributions would take place every five years.
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Research Briefing
Reducing the size of the House of Commons
The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill was introduced on 22 July 2010 and introduces new Rules for Redistribution which make provision for the number of constituencies to be reduced to 600. This note looks briefly at the current Rules for Redistribution and at recent calls for the Rules to be changed; details of the length of time it has taken to carry out periodical reviews of Parliamentary constituencies are also given. A summary of the Bill's main provisions is also included.
Total results (page 15 of 18)