– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 12 June 1991.
David Winnick
, Walsall North
12:00,
12 June 1991
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Will you confirm that it is the right of all Back-Bench Members to express their point of view in the Chamber or outside it, and that any attempt to stop Members doing that would be serious? It should be noted that there seems to be an attempt to stop one Member of this place from expressing a viewpoint. I refer to persistent reports—no doubt you have seen them, Mr. Speaker—that attempts are being made to muzzle the right hon. Member for Finchley (Mrs. Thatcher). Yesterday, the Prime Minister said in answer to a question that all Members of this place have a right to express a point of view, yet there are persistent reports in various newspapers, including the Evening Standard, that attempts are being made—
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
Order. Let me deal with points of order one at a time. I can only subscribe to what the Prime Minister said yesterday. In any case, what is said outside the Chamber is not a matter for me.
Mr David Ashby
, North West Leicestershire
Rather than that bogus point of order, Mr. Speaker, I wish to raise a genuine point of order. I am concerned about the membership of Select Committees. I understand that hon. Members are allocated to the Committees according to the strength of the parties represented in the House. It is rumoured, on strong authority, that the hon. Members for Liverpool, Broadgreen (Mr. Fields), for Liverpool, Riverside (Mr. Parry) and for Liverpool, Garston (Mr. Loyden) are threatened with expulsion from the Labour party if they support the Militant candidate in the Liverpool, Walton By-election. If that threat were to be carried out—
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
Order. That is an equally bogus point of order. I cannot deal with rumours.
Mr Robert Hughes
, Harrow West
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
Is this a genuine point of order?
Mr Robert Hughes
, Harrow West
Yes, Mr. Speaker. You are, of course, the guardian of the reputation, in one sense, of hon. Members when they are in the Chamber. I have been grateful to you for protecting my reputation against that of another hon. Member who shares my name, the hon. Member for Aberdeen, North (Mr. Hughes). It is said, Mr. Speaker, that there are candidates in the Liverpool, Walton By-election who claim that they represent the real Labour party and the genuine Labour party. If one of the two candidates happens to be elected, how should he describe himself in the record? How will we ensure that we know which bunch of thugs is represented as against the other bunch of thugs?
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
I am surprised that the hon. Member cannot do better than that. I understand that there are also candidates in elections that call themselves loonie-this and loonie-that. I think that we had better get on.
The House of Commons.
The Speaker is an MP who has been elected to act as Chairman during debates in the House of Commons. He or she is responsible for ensuring that the rules laid down by the House for the carrying out of its business are observed. It is the Speaker who calls MPs to speak, and maintains order in the House. He or she acts as the House's representative in its relations with outside bodies and the other elements of Parliament such as the Lords and the Monarch. The Speaker is also responsible for protecting the interests of minorities in the House. He or she must ensure that the holders of an opinion, however unpopular, are allowed to put across their view without undue obstruction. It is also the Speaker who reprimands, on behalf of the House, an MP brought to the Bar of the House. In the case of disobedience the Speaker can 'name' an MP which results in their suspension from the House for a period. The Speaker must be impartial in all matters. He or she is elected by MPs in the House of Commons but then ceases to be involved in party politics. All sides in the House rely on the Speaker's disinterest. Even after retirement a former Speaker will not take part in political issues. Taking on the office means losing close contact with old colleagues and keeping apart from all groups and interests, even avoiding using the House of Commons dining rooms or bars. The Speaker continues as a Member of Parliament dealing with constituent's letters and problems. By tradition other candidates from the major parties do not contest the Speaker's seat at a General Election. The Speakership dates back to 1377 when Sir Thomas Hungerford was appointed to the role. The title Speaker comes from the fact that the Speaker was the official spokesman of the House of Commons to the Monarch. In the early years of the office, several Speakers suffered violent deaths when they presented unwelcome news to the King. Further information can be obtained from factsheet M2 on the UK Parliament website.
A by-election occurs when a seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant during the lifetime of a Parliament (i.e. between general elections) because the sitting MP dies, resigns, is elevated to the peerage, or becomes ineligible to sit for some other reason. If a vacancy occurs when the House is in session, the Chief Whip of the Party that formerly held the seat moves a Motion for a new writ. This leads to the by-election taking place. Prior notice does not have to be given in the Order Paper of the House. There is no time limit in which a new writ has to be issued, although by convention it is usually done within three months of a seat becoming vacant. There have been times when seats have remained empty for more than six months before a by-election was called. The sitting party will obviously choose a time when they feel confident of success. Seats are often left vacant towards the end of a Parliament to be filled at the General Election though this is not always the case and by-elections have sometimes occurred just before the dissolution of Parliament. While a vacancy exists a member of the same party in a neighbouring constituency handles constituency matters. When the new Member is elected in the by-election, all outstanding matters are handed back. Further information can be obtained from factsheet M7 at the UK Parliament site.
