Parliamentary Privilege
Backbench MPs
Significance of Backbenchers
The Backbench Business Committee
The Work of Select Committees
Select Committees as Effective
Select Committees as Ineffective
The Role and Significance of the Opposition
Prime Minister’s Questions
The Purpose and Nature ...
The Ways in which Parliament
interacts with the Executive
Parliamentary Privilege: Within Parliament, MPs have complete freedom of speech and are protected
from libel law. For example, the Lib dem MP John Hemming named Ryan Giggs as having been the
person protected by a gagging order on the press about an affair in 2011.
Backbench MPs: those who do not hold government or shadow cabinet positions. They are often
considered ‘lobby fodder’ whose primary role is to vote in support of their party leadership. Promises or
the potential of holding office in the future may keep Backbenchers in line.
Backbenchers in the House of Lords are often retired politicians and more likely experts in their own
field and are more likely to be independent and less concerned about potential prospects. There are also
a great number of crossbenchers in the Lords
Significance of Backbenchers
The significance of backbenchers depends on Parliamentary composition e.g., a large majority
government can pass legislation regardless of minor rebellions from backbenchers, making their
role less significant. This can be said of the current 80 seat majority.
A government with a small majority means that backbenchers can swing decisions and pressure
them into taking a certain direction
There were rebellions in 35% of divisions for the 2010-2015 Parliament, up from 28% in 2005-
2010
BREXIT led to countless rebellions against May and Johnson
Johnson lost 100% of the votes early in his time as PM, with Parliament wanting to delay BREXIT
and a ‘no deal’. As a result, Johnson suspended the Conservative whip from 21 MPs who voted
against the government, including Kenneth Clarke and Nicholas Somes. This shows they can
have major significance and influence government procedure.
‘Urgent Questions’ (backbenchers can push forward if they are unhappy or want clarity on a
current issue) have been asked more frequently, especially over the issues of BREXIT, but the
average had been increasing before this. In 2013/14, the average was around 0.2 urgent
questions per sitting day, just under 0.5 in 2015/16, and then just under 0.9 in 2017- 2019. This
suggests that the significance of backbenchers is increasing.
Backbenchers raising issues doesn’t necessarily reflect as change. Very few 10-minute rule
speeches lead to law changes, and committees (which backbenchers sit on) are proportional to
the distribution of seats in the Commons and so the government tends to get bills approved
with ease and support without being held much to account.
The power of patronage, party loyalty and whips keep most backbenchers in line with party
leanings most of the time. Since the 2019 election, the 80-seat conservative majority has
weakened the position of any backbench rebels, though there has been opposition to some
government COVID measures (particularly on the slow pace of the removal of restrictions). 5
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