Comparison of Divisions: Political Parties Funding — Reform rejected — 4 Dec 2007 at 18:48 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
The majority voted against the motion:[1]
-
This House
-
notes with concern the corrosion of public trust in democracy following the recent succession of scandals over the funding of the governing political party;
-
regrets that a comprehensive package of proposals to reform electoral law was not achieved by the inter-party talks owing to the refusal of the Secretary of State for Justice and the Labour representative, Mr Peter Watt, to accept a comprehensive cap on donations;
-
observes the unhealthy increase in back-door state funding through the £6 million of funds allocated to special advisers and the funding of over 3,000 press and communications officers across Whitehall and its quangos;
-
asserts that the Communications Allowance[2][3] is an unhealthy extension of taxpayer funding for party propaganda that advantages the governing party; and
-
calls for a comprehensive package of reforms to restore public trust and to support a vibrant local democracy and voluntary activism, which must include an across-the-board cap and annually a genuine individual choice for union members on whether they wish to donate to their favoured political party.
An alternative motion was passed in by the next vote.[4]
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) |
Brian Binley | Northampton South | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Butterfill | Bournemouth West | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Derek Conway | Old Bexley and Sidcup | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Davis | Haltemprice and Howden | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Heathcoat-Amory | Wells | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Horam | Orpington | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Stewart Hosie | Dundee East | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Boris Johnson | Henley | Con | aye |
absent |
Julie Kirkbride | Bromsgrove | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Peter Luff | Mid Worcestershire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Angus MacNeil | Na h-Eileanan an Iar | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Mates | East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Francis Maude | Horsham | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Malcolm Moss | North East Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Mundell | Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Owen Paterson | North Shropshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Stanley | Tonbridge and Malling | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Diane Abbott | Hackney North and Stoke Newington | Lab | no |
aye |
Danny Alexander | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Norman Baker | Lewes | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Barrett | Edinburgh West | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Alan Beith | Berwick-upon-Tweed | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Tom Brake | Carshalton and Wallington | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Annette Brooke | Mid Dorset and North Poole | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Jeremy Browne | Taunton | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Malcolm Bruce | Gordon | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Lorely Burt | Solihull | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Vincent Cable | Twickenham | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Ian Cawsey | Brigg and Goole | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Harry Cohen | Leyton and Wanstead | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Jeremy Corbyn | Islington North | Lab | no |
aye |
Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent | Independent | no |
aye |
Paul Farrelly | Newcastle-under-Lyme | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Lynne Featherstone | Hornsey and Wood Green | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Don Foster | Bath | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew George | St Ives | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Neil Gerrard | Walthamstow | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Julia Goldsworthy | Falmouth and Camborne | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Evan Harris | Oxford West and Abingdon | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Nick Harvey | North Devon | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
David Heath | Somerton and Frome | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Paul Holmes | Chesterfield | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Kelvin Hopkins | Luton North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Martin Horwood | Cheltenham | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
David Howarth | Cambridge | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Joan Humble | Blackpool North and Fleetwood | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Mark Hunter | Cheadle | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | no |
aye |
Norman Lamb | North Norfolk | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
David Laws | Yeovil | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew MacKinlay | Thurrock | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | no |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Martin McDonnell | Hayes and Harlington | Lab | no |
aye |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab | no |
aye |
Michael Moore | Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Julie Morgan | Cardiff North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Nick Palmer | Broxtowe | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Steve Pound | Ealing North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Nick Raynsford | Greenwich and Woolwich | Lab | no |
aye |
Andy Reed | Loughborough | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Willie Rennie | Dunfermline and West Fife | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Dan Rogerson | North Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | no |
tellaye |
Bob Russell | Colchester | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Adrian Sanders | Torbay | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Alan Simpson | Nottingham South | Lab | no |
aye |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | no |
aye |
Robert Smith | West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew Stunell | Hazel Grove | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Matthew Taylor | Truro and St Austell | LDem | no |
aye |
Sarah Teather | Brent East | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Thurso | Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | no |
aye |
Steve Webb | Northavon | LDem | no |
aye |
Stephen Williams | Bristol West | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Phil Willis | Harrogate and Knaresborough | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Jennifer Willott | Cardiff Central | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | no |
aye |
Richard Younger-Ross | Teignbridge | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Battle | Leeds West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Hilary Benn | Leeds Central | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Karen Buck | Regent's Park and Kensington North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Richard Burden | Birmingham, Northfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Colin Burgon | Elmet | Lab | no |
absent |
Stephen Byers | North Tyneside | Lab | no |
absent |
Richard Caborn | Sheffield Central | Lab | no |
absent |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Martin Caton | Gower | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Clapham | Barnsley West and Penistone | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Katy Clark | North Ayrshire and Arran | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Charles Clarke | Norwich South | Lab | no |
absent |
Jon Cruddas | Dagenham | Lab | no |
absent |
Claire Curtis-Thomas | Crosby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jim Dobbin | Heywood and Middleton | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Frank Field | Birkenhead | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mike Gapes | Ilford South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ian Gibson | Norwich North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Sandra Gidley | Romsey | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Roger Godsiff | Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath | Lab | no |
absent |
Mike Hall | Weaver Vale | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Patrick Hall | Bedford | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Fabian Hamilton | Leeds North East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heyes | Ashton-under-Lyne | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Meg Hillier | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Margaret Hodge | Barking | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jimmy Hood | Lanark and Hamilton East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Lindsay Hoyle | Chorley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Siân James | Swansea East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Peter Kilfoyle | Liverpool, Walton | Lab | no |
absent |
Ashok Kumar | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ivan Lewis | Bury South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Martin Linton | Battersea | Lab | no |
absent |
John MacDougall | Glenrothes | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Khalid Mahmood | Birmingham, Perry Barr | Lab | no |
absent |
Judy Mallaber | Amber Valley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne McGuire | Stirling | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Meacher | Oldham West and Royton | Lab | no |
absent |
David Miliband | South Shields | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ed Miliband | Doncaster North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Austin Mitchell | Great Grimsby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne Moffat | East Lothian | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Lembit Öpik | Montgomeryshire | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Sandra Osborne | Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Greg Pope | Hyndburn | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bridget Prentice | Lewisham East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bill Rammell | Harlow | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Robertson | Glasgow North West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Martin Salter | Reading West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Marsha Singh | Bradford West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne Snelgrove | South Swindon | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Gavin Strang | Edinburgh East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Gisela Stuart | Birmingham, Edgbaston | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jo Swinson | East Dunbartonshire | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Neil Turner | Wigan | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Shaun Woodward | St Helens South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anthony D Wright | Great Yarmouth | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
James Arbuthnot | North East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tony Baldry | Banbury | Con | absent |
aye |
Gregory Barker | Bexhill and Battle | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Henry Bellingham | North West Norfolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Graham Brady | Altrincham and Sale West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Colin Breed | South East Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
James Brokenshire | Hornchurch | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paul Burstow | Sutton and Cheam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alistair Burt | North East Bedfordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Cameron | Witney | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Menzies Campbell | North East Fife | LDem | absent |
aye |
Christopher Chope | Christchurch | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Clegg | Sheffield, Hallam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stephen Crabb | Preseli Pembrokeshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Curry | Skipton and Ripon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Davies | Monmouth | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nigel Dodds | Belfast North | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jeffrey M. Donaldson | Lagan Valley | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Farron | Westmorland and Lonsdale | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Fisher | Stoke-on-Trent Central | Lab | absent |
aye |
Liam Fox | Woodspring | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Goodwill | Scarborough and Whitby | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Gummer | Suffolk Coastal | Con | absent |
aye |
Greg Hands | Hammersmith and Fulham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Hemming | Birmingham, Yardley | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Sylvia Hermon | North Down | UUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Howard | Folkestone and Hythe | Con | absent |
aye |
John Howell | Henley | Con | absent |
aye |
Simon Hughes | North Southwark and Bermondsey | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Christopher Huhne | Eastleigh | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Jones | Clwyd West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Daniel Kawczynski | Shrewsbury and Atcham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Susan Kramer | Richmond Park | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Lancaster | North East Milton Keynes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Leech | Manchester, Withington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Lidington | Aylesbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Elfyn Llwyd | Meirionnydd Nant Conwy | PC (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Loughton | East Worthing and Shoreham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Maclean | Penrith and The Border | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Mason | Glasgow East | SNP | absent |
aye |
William McCrea | South Antrim | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Mitchell | Sutton Coldfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Mulholland | Leeds North West | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
George Osborne | Tatton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Pelling | Croydon Central | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Redwood | Wokingham | Con | absent |
aye |
Alan Reid | Argyll and Bute | LDem (front bench) | absent |
tellaye |
Malcolm Rifkind | Kensington and Chelsea | Con | absent |
aye |
Hugh Robertson | Faversham and Mid Kent | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Laurence Robertson | Tewkesbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Simmonds | Boston and Skegness | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Taylor | Wyre Forest | Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Timpson | Crewe and Nantwich | Con | absent |
aye |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Charles Walker | Broxbourne | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Hywel Williams | Caernarfon | PC (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Williams | Ceredigion | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nicholas Winterton | Macclesfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Hilary Armstrong | North West Durham | Lab | absent |
no |
Kevin Barron | Rother Valley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Roger Berry | Kingswood | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Clive Betts | Sheffield, Attercliffe | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hazel Blears | Salford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gordon Brown | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Colin Challen | Morley and Rothwell | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ben Chapman | Wirral South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ann Cryer | Keighley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alistair Darling | Edinburgh South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Drew | Stroud | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Natascha Engel | North East Derbyshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hywel Francis | Aberavon | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Grogan | Selby | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Heppell | Nottingham East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Keith Hill | Streatham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Sharon Hodgson | Gateshead East and Washington West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Hutton | Barrow and Furness | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Fraser Kemp | Houghton and Washington East | Lab | absent |
no |
Bob Laxton | Derby North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian McCartney | Makerfield | Lab | absent |
no |
Mike O'Brien | North Warwickshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Albert Owen | Ynys Môn | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Lindsay Roy | Glenrothes | Lab | absent |
no |
Angela Smith | Sheffield, Hillsborough | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian Stewart | Eccles | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Kitty Ussher | Burnley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Tony Wright | Cannock Chase | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | absent |
both |
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 362 voted the same way, with 65 voting in opposite ways.
There were 57 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 162 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])
=
362
(362 + 65 + 0.2x162)
=
362
459.4
=
0.788
=
78.8 %.