Backbench Business Committee – in the House of Commons at 3:41 pm on 4 March 2010.
Resolved ,
That the following Standing Order be made, with effect from the beginning of the next Parliament:-
(1) At the commencement of every Parliament, or from time to time, as necessity may arise, the Speaker shall notify the House of the arrangements to be made to elect a Chairman of Ways and Means and two Deputy Chairmen of Ways and Means, who shall be known respectively as the First and the Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means.
(2) The election shall be by secret ballot.
(3) Preparatory arrangements for a ballot shall be made under the supervision of the Clerk of the House.
(4)(a) Nominations of candidates shall be in writing and shall be received by the Clerk of the House between 10.00 am and 5.00 pm on the day before the House is to elect the Deputy Speakers.
(b) Each nomination shall consist of a brief signed statement made by the candidate declaring his willingness to stand for election accompanied by the signatures of not fewer than six nor more than 10 Members. No Member shall sign more than three such statements and if any Member does so, his signature shall no longer be valid.
(c) As soon as practicable following the close of nominations, lists of the candidates and their sponsors and the statements shall be placed in the Members' lobby and published.
(5)(a) A ballot shall take place between eleven o'clock and twelve o'clock in a place appointed by the Speaker.
(b) Each Member intending to vote shall be provided with a ballot paper bearing the names of the candidates listed in alphabetical order.
(c) Each such Member may vote for as many or as few candidates on the ballot paper as he wishes, marking them in order of preference.
(d) Counting shall take place under arrangements made by the Clerk of the House.
(e) The ballot shall be counted under the Single Transferable Vote System with constraints that of those elected:
(i) two candidates shall come from the opposite side of the House to that from which the Speaker was drawn, the first of which candidates will be Chairman of Ways and Means and the second, Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means,
(ii) one candidate shall come from the same side of the House as that from which the Speaker was drawn and shall be First Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means, and
(iii) at least one man and at least one woman shall be elected across the four posts of Speaker and Deputy Speakers.
(f) The Speaker shall have discretion to vary the timings given in this order and power to give final directions on any matter of doubt arising from the conduct of a ballot or from an individual ballot paper.
(6) As soon as practicable after the votes have been counted the Speaker shall announce to the House the results of the ballot and direct the Clerk to enter the names of the elected Members in the Journal.
(7) Where a ballot is needed to elect to a single post of Deputy Speaker as a result of a change in the Speaker, the election shall be held with candidates from only the relevant side of the House.
(8) Each Deputy Speaker elected under this order is so elected to serve until the end of the Parliament.
(9) The Deputy Chairmen shall be entitled to exercise all the powers vested in the Chairman of Ways and Means, including his powers as Deputy Speaker .-(Ms Harman.)
The single transferable vote (STV) is a voting system that allocates seats in a parliament or committee in proportion to the number of votes recorded. This is in contrast to the first-past-the-post system, which may result in political representation failing to reflect votes cast. Under STV voters indicate their support for individuals who they feel will best represent them, unlike in list systems where they must choose a political party.
STV ballot papers include a list of the names of each candidate standing in the election. Voters are asked to place a number "1" next to their first choice candidate and a number "2" next to their second choice candidate, a number "3" next to their third choice and so on.
At the first stage of the count each ballot paper is awarded to their first choice candidate and candidates with the required number of votes (called the quota) are elected. If a candidate has more votes than the required number of votes a proportion of these votes may be transferred after considering the preferences expressed by the voters.
Candidates who receive very few votes are usually excluded and each of the votes is transfered according to the preferences expressed by the voter.
In Northern Ireland STV is used for European and local elections as well as for elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly. STV is also used for local elections in Scotland.
The Deputy speaker is in charge of proceedings of the House of Commons in the absence of the Speaker.
The deputy speaker's formal title is Chairman of Ways and Means, one of whose functions is to preside over the House of Commons when it is in a Committee of the Whole House.
The deputy speaker also presides over the Budget.
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.
