Comparison of Divisions: Armed Conflict — Parliamentary Approval — 15 May 2007 at 21:42 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
Those voting No rejected the motion before Parliament, which read:
This House supports the principle that parliamentary approval should be required for any substantial deployment of British Armed Forces into situations of war or international armed conflict; and, in the light of the Fourth Report from the Public Administration Committee, Session 2003-04, 'Taming the Prerogative: Strengthening Ministerial Accountability to Parliament', HC 422, and the Fifteenth Report of the House of Lords Constitution Committee, Session 2005-06, 'Waging War: Parliament"s role and responsibility', HL 236, calls on the Government to bring forward proposals to give effect to this principle, including mechanisms to ensure that the capability to react rapidly in emergencies is maintained.
As a result it was replaced with the new motion:
This House welcomes the precedents set by the Government in 2002 and 2003 in seeking and obtaining the approval of the House for its decisions in respect of military action against Iraq; is of the view that it is inconceivable that any Government would in practice depart from this precedent; taking note of the reports of the Public Administration Select Committee, HC 422 of Session 2003-04, and of the Lords Committee on the Constitution, HL 236 of Session 2005-06, believes that the time has come for Parliament's role to be made more explicit in approving, or otherwise, decisions of the Government relating to the major, or substantial, deployment of British forces overseas into actual, or potential, armed conflict; recognises the imperative to take full account of the paramount need not to compromise the security of British forces nor the operational discretion of those in command, including in respect of emergencies and regrets that insufficient weight has been given to this in some quarters; and calls upon the Government, after consultation, to come forward with more detailed proposals for Parliament to consider.
which passed automatically
The majority of MPs voted in favour of the motion:[1]
-
This House
-
regrets the Government's recent statement[2] outlining the eligibility criteria for Gurkhas to reside in the United Kingdom;
-
recognises the contribution the Gurkhas have made to the safety and freedom of the United Kingdom for the past 200 years;
-
notes that more Gurkhas have laid down their lives for the United Kingdom than are estimated to want to live here;
-
believes that Gurkhas who retired before 1997 should be treated fairly and in the same way as those who have retired since;
-
is concerned that the Government's new guidelines will permit only a small minority of Gurkhas and their families to settle whilst preventing the vast majority;
-
further believes that people who are prepared to fight and die for the United Kingdom should be entitled to live in the country; and
-
calls upon the Government to withdraw its new guidelines immediately and bring forward revised proposals that extend an equal right of residence to all Gurkhas.
As a consequence, the alternative Government motion, which read:[3]
-
This House
-
recognises that this Government is the only one since the Second World War to allow Gurkhas and their families settlement rights to the United Kingdom;
-
notes that in 2004 the Government permitted settlement rights to Gurkhas discharged since 1997, following the transfer of the Brigade HQ from Hong Kong to the United Kingdom;
-
further notes that under these rules around 6,000 Gurkhas and family members have been welcomed to the UK;
-
acknowledges that the court judgement of September 2008 determined that the 1997 cut-off date was fair and rational, while seeking clarification of the criteria for settlement rights for those who retired before 1997;
-
further notes that on 24 April the Government published new and more generous guidelines for the settlement applications of Gurkhas who retired before 1997;
-
supports this revised guidance, which will make around 10,000 Gurkhas and family members eligible to settle in the UK;
-
further notes that the Government undertakes actively to inform those who may be eligible in Nepal of these changes and to review the impact of the new guidance within 12 months;
-
further notes that the contribution Gurkhas have made is already recognised by pensions paid to around 25,000 Gurkhas or their widows in Nepal that allow for a good standard of living there; and
-
further notes that in the year 2000 Gurkha pensions were doubled and that, earlier in April 2009, in addition to an inflationary uplift of 14 per cent., those over 80 years old received a 20 per cent. increase in their pension.
... was never voted upon.
Although this extremely rare Government defeat in an opposition day motion is not binding (has no legal force)[4] a Government minister made a statement later in the day to bring "forward the date for the determination of the outstanding applications to the end of May."[5]
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MPs for which their vote on Motion (a) differed from their vote on Motion (b).
You can also see just opposite votes
between these two divisions,
or simply all the votes.
Sort by: Name | Constituency | Party | Vote (a) | Vote (b)
Name | Constituency | Party | Vote (a) | Vote (b) |
John Reid | Airdrie and Shotts | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Weir | Angus | SNP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Herbert | Arundel and South Downs | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heyes | Ashton-under-Lyne | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Sandra Osborne | Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Margaret Hodge | Barking | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Eric Illsley | Barnsley Central | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Clapham | Barnsley West and Penistone | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Maria Miller | Basingstoke | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Mann | Bassetlaw | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | absent |
aye |
Martin Linton | Battersea | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Patrick Hall | Bedford | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Peter Robinson | Belfast East | DUP | no |
aye |
Nigel Dodds | Belfast North | DUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Baron | Billericay | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gisela Stuart | Birmingham, Edgbaston | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Khalid Mahmood | Birmingham, Perry Barr | Lab | no |
absent |
Lynne Jones | Birmingham, Selly Oak | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Roger Godsiff | Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath | Lab | no |
absent |
Joan Humble | Blackpool North and Fleetwood | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent | Independent | no |
aye |
John Butterfill | Bournemouth West | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Roger Williams | Brecon and Radnorshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Ian Cawsey | Brigg and Goole | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Dawn Primarolo | Bristol South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Nick Palmer | Broxtowe | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
John Bercow | Buckingham | whilst Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ivan Lewis | Bury South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Chris McCafferty | Calder Valley | Lab | no |
absent |
Tony Wright | Cannock Chase | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Julie Morgan | Cardiff North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Adam Price | Carmarthen East and Dinefwr | PC (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lindsay Hoyle | Chorley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Martyn Jones | Clwyd South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ann Winterton | Congleton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Betty Williams | Conwy | Lab | no |
absent |
Jamie Reed | Copeland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Phil Hope | Corby | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gwyneth Dunwoody | Crewe and Nantwich | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Edward Timpson | Crewe and Nantwich | Con | absent |
aye |
Andrew Pelling | Croydon Central | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Andrew Pelling | Croydon Central | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Boswell | Daventry | Con | aye |
absent |
Margaret Beckett | Derby South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ed Miliband | Doncaster North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Mundell | Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Stewart Hosie | Dundee East | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Steve Pound | Ealing North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Virendra Sharma | Ealing, Southall | Lab | absent |
no |
Sammy Wilson | East Antrim | DUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Jo Swinson | East Dunbartonshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Gregory Campbell | East Londonderry | DUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Anne Moffat | East Lothian | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Greg Knight | East Yorkshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Christopher Huhne | Eastleigh | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gavin Strang | Edinburgh East | Lab | no |
absent |
Colin Burgon | Elmet | Lab | no |
absent |
Clive Efford | Eltham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Austin | Erith and Thamesmead | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Julia Goldsworthy | Falmouth and Camborne | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Rudi Vis | Finchley and Golders Green | Lab | no |
absent |
Mark Durkan | Foyle | SDLP (front bench) | no |
absent |
Michael Jack | Fylde | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Marshall | Glasgow East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Mason | Glasgow East | SNP | absent |
aye |
Ann McKechin | Glasgow North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Robertson | Glasgow North West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Lindsay Roy | Glenrothes | Lab | absent |
no |
Malcolm Bruce | Gordon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Martin Caton | Gower | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Quentin Davies | Grantham and Stamford | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Quentin Davies | Grantham and Stamford | whilst Lab (front bench) | absent |
no |
Adam Holloway | Gravesham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Austin Mitchell | Great Grimsby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Nick Raynsford | Greenwich and Woolwich | Lab | no |
aye |
Diane Abbott | Hackney North and Stoke Newington | Lab | absent |
aye |
Meg Hillier | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
David Davis | Haltemprice and Howden | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Greg Hands | Hammersmith and Fulham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | absent |
aye |
Bill Rammell | Harlow | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Martin McDonnell | Hayes and Harlington | Lab | absent |
aye |
John Howell | Henley | Con | absent |
aye |
Boris Johnson | Henley | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Paul Keetch | Hereford | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
James Clappison | Hertsmere | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Lynne Featherstone | Hornsey and Wood Green | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Francis Maude | Horsham | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Greg Pope | Hyndburn | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Danny Alexander | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Turner | Isle of Wight | Con | absent |
aye |
Jeremy Corbyn | Islington North | Lab | absent |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Prescott | Kingston upon Hull East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Roger Berry | Kingswood | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Edward O'Hara | Knowsley South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jeffrey M. Donaldson | Lagan Valley | DUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Jimmy Hood | Lanark and Hamilton East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Hilary Benn | Leeds Central | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Fabian Hamilton | Leeds North East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab | absent |
aye |
Bridget Prentice | Lewisham East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Harry Cohen | Leyton and Wanstead | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Peter Kilfoyle | Liverpool, Walton | Lab | no |
absent |
Jane Kennedy | Liverpool, Wavertree | Lab | absent |
no |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Lab | no |
absent |
Andy Reed | Loughborough | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Kelvin Hopkins | Luton North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Margaret Moran | Luton South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Nicholas Winterton | Macclesfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Theresa May | Maidenhead | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ian McCartney | Makerfield | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Leech | Manchester, Withington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alan Meale | Mansfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | no |
aye |
Annette Brooke | Mid Dorset and North Poole | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nicholas Soames | Mid Sussex | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ashok Kumar | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Paul Beresford | Mole Valley | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lembit Öpik | Montgomeryshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Angus Robertson | Moray | SNP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Geraldine Smith | Morecambe and Lunesdale | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Colin Challen | Morley and Rothwell | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Patrick Mercer | Newark | Con | absent |
aye |
Richard Benyon | Newbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Doug Henderson | Newcastle upon Tyne North | Lab | no |
absent |
Paul Farrelly | Newcastle-under-Lyme | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Paul Flynn | Newport West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Katy Clark | North Ayrshire and Arran | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Robert Walter | North Dorset | Con | aye |
absent |
Sylvia Hermon | North Down | UUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Malcolm Moss | North East Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Menzies Campbell | North East Fife | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
James Arbuthnot | North East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Oliver Heald | North East Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Norman Lamb | North Norfolk | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Owen Paterson | North Shropshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Wills | North Swindon | Lab | absent |
no |
Stephen Byers | North Tyneside | Lab | no |
absent |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | no |
both |
James Gray | North Wiltshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Brian Binley | Northampton South | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Ian Gibson | Norwich North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Charles Clarke | Norwich South | Lab | no |
absent |
Alan Simpson | Nottingham South | Lab | absent |
aye |
Derek Conway | Old Bexley and Sidcup | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Horam | Orpington | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | no |
aye |
Kim Howells | Pontypridd | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | no |
aye |
Martin Salter | Reading West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Karen Buck | Regent's Park and Kensington North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Paul Rowen | Rochdale | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Sandra Gidley | Romsey | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Denis MacShane | Rotherham | Lab | no |
absent |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Hazel Blears | Salford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Elliot Morley | Scunthorpe | Lab | absent |
no |
Phil Wilson | Sedgefield | Lab | absent |
no |
Richard Caborn | Sheffield Central | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Nick Clegg | Sheffield, Hallam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Philip Davies | Shipley | Con | absent |
aye |
William McCrea | South Antrim | DUP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Eddie McGrady | South Down | SDLP | aye |
absent |
Richard Bacon | South Norfolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Patrick Cormack | South Staffordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Snelgrove | South Swindon | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Pugh | Southport | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Shaun Woodward | St Helens South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne McGuire | Stirling | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Frank Cook | Stockton North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mark Fisher | Stoke-on-Trent Central | Lab | no |
aye |
Iris Robinson | Strangford | DUP | no |
absent |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Bill Etherington | Sunderland North | Lab | no |
absent |
Siân James | Swansea East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
George Osborne | Tatton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jeremy Browne | Taunton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew MacKinlay | Thurrock | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
John Stanley | Tonbridge and Malling | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Lammy | Tottenham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Simpson | Upper Bann | DUP (front bench) | no |
absent |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | Lab | absent |
aye |
Neil Gerrard | Walthamstow | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Claire Ward | Watford | Lab (minister) | absent |
tellno |
Mike Hall | Weaver Vale | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heathcoat-Amory | Wells | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Robert Smith | West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Adrian Bailey | West Bromwich West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Neil Turner | Wigan | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Cameron | Witney | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Humfrey Malins | Woking | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Rob Marris | Wolverhampton South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Richard Taylor | Wyre Forest | Independent (front bench) | no |
aye |
David Laws | Yeovil | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
The measure of similarity between these two divisions is a calculation
based on a comparison of their votes.
There were
646 MPs who could have voted in both of these divisions,
and 412 voted the same way, with 30 voting in opposite ways.
There were 40 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 164 who voted in only one of them.
We invert the vote on the second division if it makes the distance closer (since the meaning of
'Aye' and 'No' are often interchangeable depending on how the question was put).
In this case, they line up the same way.
An 's vote in in only one of the divisions contributes a factor of 0.2 to the distance.
The calculation runs as follows:
ratio =
[same-votes]
([same-votes] + [differing-votes] + 0.2x[abstain-in-one])
=
412
(412 + 30 + 0.2x164)
=
412
474.8
=
0.868
=
86.8 %.