The seminar was attended
by 90 delegates from Australia, Bermuda, Brunei, Canada, the Cook Islands,
Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, the
Maldives, New Zealand, Nigeria, Rwanda, the Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia,
Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, the Turks and Caicos
Islands, Uganda, the Virgin Islands and Zambia. Canada was represented by
MP Pierre-Luc Dusseault.
Purpose
To provide delegates with
information on the practices and procedures of the British Parliament that they
can apply in their own legislatures.
Summary
The seminar was extremely
well organized. It was an excellent opportunity for parliamentarians and clerks
from around the world to learn about the parliamentary system that is the foundation
of most of our own legislatures. Delegates learned about many aspects of the
British parliamentary system, known as the Westminster system. Each subject was
addressed in the form of a panel discussion. Panelists were mainly MPs, lords
and employees of Parliament. Over the five-day seminar, participants met with a
large number of British parliamentarians. It was a very exciting experience for
the delegates.. The seminar also included organized workshops, discussion
sessions, receptions and working dinners, opportunities to watch Parliament at
work, and visits to constituencies and Westminster. It was also very rewarding
to visit Parliament and watch question time and a debate in the House of
Commons. Overall, the seminar demonstrated the best of the UK Parliament .
Introduction to
Parliament
This first session
provided an overview of the Westminster parliamentary system with three
panelists: Ms. Philippa Helme, Principal Clerk of Select Committees, Mr. Andrew
Percy, MP, and Mr. Gavin Williamson, MP. Delegates learned about the history
and structure of Parliament as well as recent reforms.
The legislative process
This session
focused on the legislative process for government bills and private members’
bills. The speakers were Ms. Jacqy Sharpe, Clerk of Legislation, House of
Commons, Ms. Kate Emms, Clerk of Private Members’ Bills, and Mr. Jacob
Rees-Mogg, MP. Discussions centred around how bills are prepared and how they
become law, a process which is very similar to that of Canada.
Running
Parliament
The panelists Sir
Robert Rogers, Clerk of the House of Commons, Mr. David Beamish, Clerk of the
Parliaments in the House of Lords, and Mr. John Turso, MP, discussed the
administration of the British Parliament. In England, the House of Commons
Commission is the equivalent of our Board of Internal Economy.
Bicameralism:
The work of the second chamber
The Rt. Hon. Lord
Grocott, Baroness Stern and the Rt. Hon. Baroness Prashar discussed the
relationship between the two houses of Parliament in a bicameral system. The
three Lords naturally defended the Upper House. The House of Lords is
unelected, as in Canada. The panelists explained that the Upper House considers
bills introduced in the House of Commons from a much less partisan perspective.
The House of Lords actually seems to be much less partisan than Canada’s Senate
due to “crossbenchers” who do not belong to any specific political party.
Parliamentary
questions and motions
This very
informative session discussed the significant differences between the British
and Canadian systems. The Principal Clerk of the Table Office of the House of
Commons and MP Thomas Docherty provided an overview of the procedures for
parliamentary questions and motions. To be approved by the Clerk, the questions
asked during question time must conform to a very strict format. Once a
question has been approved, the minister concerned must answer it on his
allotted day. Each day provides members with the opportunity to ask a question
of a different minister. Each minister has a question time about once every
three weeks, as per an established rotation. The Prime Minister answers
questions only once a week on Wednesday at noon. This process ensures that
questions are asked according to parliamentary rules. Ministers also know the
questions in advance so that they can prepare a full reply.
The role of an
MP
Delegates heard
from MPs Sir Peter Bottomley, Dr. Roberta Blackman-Woods, Mr. Andrew Stephenson
and Ms. Shabana Mahmoud. as they discussed the role of a British MP in greater
detail. They are much like Canadian MPs in that they represent the ideas of
their constituents in the federal Parliament. They also work within a political
party system.
The role of the
opposition
Members of
Parliament Mr. Elfyn Llwyd and Mr. Jack Straw, and Baroness Armstrong of Hill
Top discussed how opposition parties can influence the parliamentary agenda,
particularly through opposition days and backbench committees. The latter can
influence the parliamentary agenda fairly effectively. These committees are composed
of MPs who do not have an official role in the House of Commons. As in Canada,
the opposition has a constitutional duty to hold the government accountable to
the House and, ultimately, the public. Like their Canadian counterparts, the
opposition parties in the UK receive funding to ensure they can perform their
duties effectively.
Party discipline
The Rt. Hon. Greg
Knight, MP and Government Whip, the Rt. Hon. Rosie Winterton, MP and Opposition
Chief Whip, and Lord Newby, Deputy Chief Whip (Liberal), discussed how party
discipline works in the British Parliament. The government has 17 whips and
they all have the title of “minister.” The official opposition has 15 whips.
Their role is to report to their party leader on the mood of caucus. The
panelists also explained the voting system in the House of Commons. It is much
different from Canada’s system. MPs have three minutes to get to the lobby of
their choice, either the Aye Lobby or the No Lobby. MPs are counted by their
party whip, and the results of the vote are reported to the Speaker of the
House.
The role of the
Leader of the House
The Leader of the
House, the Rt. Hon. Andrew Lansley, and the Shadow Leader of the House, Ms.
Angela Eagle, discussed their duties in Parliament and how their two roles
interact, as well as the importance that the government assigns to
parliamentary minorities when setting the House agenda. There are several ways
for the opposition to influence the parliamentary agenda. For example, a
parliamentary debate is triggered once an electronic petition receives 100,000
signatures. The British government very rarely uses time allocation to limit
debate, unlike the practice in the Canadian House of Commons. When time
allocation is used, it is always done in consultation with the opposition.
The media’s role
in parliamentary oversight
Lord Black of
Brentwood, Ms. Kerry McCarthy, MP, and Mr. Tristram Hunt, MP, spoke on the
media’s role in British politics and the significant difference they see in the
way that the national media and local media cover politics. They also stated
that the media are essential to holding the government accountable.
The committee
system
The panelists for
this session were Mr. Malcolm Bruce, MP, Dr. David Harrison, committee clerk,
and Ms. Fiona O’Donnell, MP. This session was particularly informative since
committees in the British parliament operate differently from their Canadian
counterparts. For example, committee chairs are elected by members of the House
of Commons. The chairmanship of committees is decided by all MPs during a vote
in the House. Committees also use social media to draw attention to their
studies. Lastly, in camera proceedings are very rare in the British
Parliament, and the decisions made in camera are publicly released
afterward.
Holding the Prime
Minister to account – Prime Minister’s Questions
This was a very
practical session, as delegates watched Prime Minister’s Questions live. This
event is held on Wednesdays from 11:30 to 12:00. The Prime Minister answers
questions from the opposition and government colleagues for 30 minutes each
week. The Commons Speaker is very involved in these proceedings, which are the
focus of media attention. Each MP can rise to seek permission to speak. The
Speaker decides who will ask a question. It is very interesting to see large
numbers of MPs rise to catch the Speaker’s eye. The Speaker will often
reprimand MPs or the Prime Minister if he believes the question or answer was
unsatisfactory. At one point, when the Prime Minister did not answer a question
and simply talked about the opposition, the Speaker asked him to start over and
answer the question this time. This is something you do not see in Canada.
Standards,
privileges and the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)
Compared with the
Canadian system, IPSA has a lot of power. Kathryn Hudson, Parliamentary
Commissioner for Standards, MPs Greg Hands and Kevin Barron, and Eve Samson,
Clerk, explained the process and the consequences for MPs who break the code of
ethics. The process starts with a complaint to the Commissioner, who conducts
an investigation and issues a report. IPSA, which the committee responsible for
ethics, considers the report and reports its findings back to the House. The
repercussions for MPs can include suspension.
The working
Parliament
Delegates observed
the House of Commons debates from the Speaker’s Gallery.
Devolution
The panelists for
this session have extensive experience with devolution, also known as
decentralization. They all are from the northern area of the United Kingdom,
including Scotland. Discussions centred around the features of a decentralized
government in which powers are delegated to lower jurisdictions.
Electoral
systems
Various electoral
systems in place in the United Kingdom, such as the first-past-the-post system
used in Canada and the single transferable vote system were discussed. Lord
Kennedy of Southwark, Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale, Lord Harrison and
MP Anne McIntosh drew on their extensive expertise to describe the main electoral
systems.
Broadcasting
Parliament
This session
described how the debates of both Houses are broadcast. The system is
practically identical to that of Canada except that the BBC, the national
broadcaster, is responsible for broadcasting the proceedings to all British
citizens.
Parliament,
non-governmental organizations and civil society
During this session, the relationship between civil society and elected
officials in Britain was discussed. MPs Andrew Mitchell and Stephen Doughty as
well as NGO representatives Melanie Ward and Isabella Sankey discussed the
advantages of working with NGOs when developing government policies and
programs. Legislators seem to work with these organizations extensively to
document situations. The “buy one get one free” funding model seems to be the
most widely advocated: groups raise their own funds and the government doubles
the amount.
Women in
Parliament
The role of women
in the British Parliament and around the world, and the benefits of their
political participation was discussed.
The role of the
Speaker
The Speakers of
both Houses attended, Mr. Bercow and Baroness. D’Souza, as well as the Deputy
Speaker of the House of Commons, Nigel Evans. They discussed their roles and
how they preside over proceedings in their respective Chambers. One significant
difference between the Canadian and British systems is that the Commons Speaker
runs uncontested in his constituency. Since the Speaker is required to be
impartial, he does not comment on the issues dividing political parties.
Parliamentary
information services
The research
service within the British Parliament. is almost identical to that of the
Canadian Parliament. MPs can call on library staff to research very broad
issues.
Commonwealth
matters
Current and upcoming
issues facing the Commonwealth, as well as how to improve the way in which the
Commonwealth functions in order to benefit all member countries were discussed.
Constituency
visits
Delegates spent the
morning in the riding of Chelsea and Fulham with Conservative MP Greg Hands. They
attended a “constituency clinic” where residents were invited to meet with
their MP to discuss an issue or problem they have regarding the government.
Young people and
Parliament
Ms. Kate Hoey and
Ms. Rushanara Ali, both MPs, discussed the important role of young people in
politics and their representation in the British Parliament. They stressed that
young people bring a different perspective to bear in decision-making and that
they can be a benefit to political institutions.
Closing plenary
Seminar
participants expressed their appreciation and said how much they had learned
about the British political system over the five days. Delegates returned home
with many ideas for improving their own political system.
