Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Navy. – in the House of Commons at on 14 June 1939.
Mr Geoffrey Shakespeare
, Norwich
The inquiry has been completed, but so far only a brief telegraphic summary has been received, and the whole matter will be given careful consideration in all its aspects when the written report, which is expected shortly, arrives. I may, however, say at once that no serious cause for discontent has been revealed, and a great Majority of the ship's company deeply resents the allegations which have appeared in a certain section of the Press. The men were given complete liberty to make any representations they wished, but not one had any complaint to make of harsh treatment or unjust punishment, and there can therefore be no question of any remission of sentences. There were certain complaints in regard to overcrowding and the condition of the ship, and these will be examined in detail when the Commodore's full report is received.
The term "majority" is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government cannot operate effectively unless it can command a majority in the House of Commons - a majority means winning more than 50% of the votes in a division. Should a Government fail to hold the confidence of the House, it has to hold a General Election. Secondly the term can also be used in an election, where it refers to the margin which the candidate with the most votes has over the candidate coming second. To win a seat a candidate need only have a majority of 1.