House of Commons of the United Kingdom
MPs have a chance today to show the government the kind of amendments that could make Theresa May’s thrice-defeated withdrawal agreement a chance of passing through Parliament. For the second time a series of motions will come before the House of Commons, testing the waters for alterations to the withdrawal agreement, including calling for referendums on a no-deal Brexit or a public vote on the final proposed Brexit deal. Others focus on economic arrangements like staying in a customs union with the EU by effectively rejoining the European Free Trade Association and European Economic Area.
It’s time politicians took the steps needed to abolish this absurd practice and give the public a say over who sits in our second chamber
Theresa May has signalled to Tory MPs that she will quit once Brexit is over. The Prime Minister gave the news to a packed meeting room of Conservative backbenchers in the House of Commons on Wednesday 27 March.
The Commons is due to be closed for two weeks in April.
After another chaotic night in the House of Commons, MPs voted on an amendment to take control of the parliamentary timetable, in a move that hasn’t been seen in over a century. There were 29 Tory MPs who rebelled against their party by voting for the amendment. Now a series of votes will be taken in the House of Commons, starting on Wednesday, which will put forward amendments to the withdrawal agreement. They could include a second referendum or a Norway-style deal which would leave the UK in the customs union.
On the continent, he’s seen as Brexit saviour and as comedic relief thanks to his vowel-bending shouts of “Order!”.
Lib Dem MP Jo Swinson was at home with her 10-week-old son when she realised a fellow MP that she was paired with had voted in her absence. While she had already been working to get proxy-voting implemented in the House of Commons, outrage over the incident helped move the stalled changes into reality. Swinson worked with Leader of the House, Conservative MP Andrea Leadsom, to bring the pilot programme into effect. Both politicians want to make parliament a more welcoming place, and believe that fostering respect during divisive times is key to getting more women into public positions.
The speaker also clashed with Andrea Leadsom in the Commons.
John Bercow has made headlines worldwide for moving to block a third vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal. But as Speaker in the House of Commons, is this out of the ordinary? We look at what the role means, both past and present, and what the speaker is actually allowed to do.
After a week of high-Brexit drama, you’d think we’d have a better idea of what the future will bring, considering the deadline is in 14 days. However after three contentious votes in the House of Commons, we are left with a Theresa May Brexit deal that was rejected for a second time, an important but not legally-binding motion to not leave the EU without a deal, and an agreement to send May to ask for an extension if her deal doesn’t get through the House a third time. It’s a lot.