Comparison of Divisions: Vehicle Excise Duty — planned increases should be abandoned — rejected — 14 May 2008 at 18:51 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
The majority of MPs voted against the motion before Parliament, which read:[1]
-
This House
-
notes with concern the increases in Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) imposed in the Budget;
-
notes that between 2006 and 2010 revenues from graduated VED will have more than doubled;
-
observes that the majority of motorists who currently pay graduated VED will now pay more;
-
deplores the Government's decision to abolish the exemption from higher graduated VED rates for cars that emit more than 186g of carbon dioxide per kilometre and were registered between March 2001 and March 2006, and the fact that this was not stated clearly at the time of the Budget;
-
considers that these changes will hit those on low incomes hardest and be a further burden on hard-working families already struggling to cope with soaring living costs;
-
further notes that, although graduated VED revenues will total £4.4 billion by 2010-11, carbon emissions from motoring are expected to reduce by less than 1% as a result of the new VED regime;
-
believes that any increases in environmental taxes should be offset by tax reductions elsewhere; and
-
calls upon the Government to abandon its planned increases in VED.
There was no alternative motion put in its place
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 |
Tim Boswell | Daventry | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Butterfill | Bournemouth West | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
James Clappison | Hertsmere | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Nigel Evans | Ribble Valley | Con | aye |
absent |
James Gray | North Wiltshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Horam | Orpington | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Jack | Fylde | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Julie Kirkbride | Bromsgrove | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Peter Luff | Mid Worcestershire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Humfrey Malins | Woking | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Peter Ainsworth | East Surrey | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
James Arbuthnot | North East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gregory Barker | Bexhill and Battle | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Baron | Billericay | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Bercow | Buckingham | whilst Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Bone | Wellingborough | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Bottomley | Worthing West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Graham Brady | Altrincham and Sale West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Angela Browning | Tiverton and Honiton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Burrowes | Enfield, Southgate | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alistair Burt | North East Bedfordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Cameron | Witney | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Clark | Tunbridge Wells | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Curry | Skipton and Ripon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Davies | Monmouth | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stephen Dorrell | Charnwood | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Philip Dunne | Ludlow | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tobias Ellwood | Bournemouth East | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Fabricant | Lichfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Field | Cities of London and Westminster | Con | absent |
aye |
David Gauke | South West Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Dame Cheryl Gillan | Chesham and Amersham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Goodwill | Scarborough and Whitby | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
William Hague | Richmond (Yorks) | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Herbert | Arundel and South Downs | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Philip Hollobone | Kettering | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Howard | Folkestone and Hythe | Con | absent |
aye |
John Howell | Henley | Con | absent |
aye |
Nick Hurd | Ruislip - Northwood | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bernard Jenkin | North Essex | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Key | Salisbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Knight | East Yorkshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jacqui Lait | Beckenham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Lidington | Aylesbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Loughton | East Worthing and Shoreham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Main | St Albans | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Theresa May | Maidenhead | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Patrick Mercer | Newark | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Maria Miller | Basingstoke | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Milton | Guildford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Murrison | Westbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stephen O'Brien | Eddisbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mike Penning | Hemel Hempstead | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Eric Pickles | Brentwood and Ongar | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Prisk | Hertford and Stortford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Randall | Uxbridge | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Hugh Robertson | Faversham and Mid Kent | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Ruffley | Bury St Edmunds | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Simmonds | Boston and Skegness | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Caroline Spelman | Meriden | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anthony Steen | Totnes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gary Streeter | South West Devon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Desmond Swayne | New Forest West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Syms | Poole | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Timpson | Crewe and Nantwich | Con | absent |
aye |
Shailesh Vara | North West Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ben Wallace | Lancaster and Wyre | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ann Widdecombe | Maidstone and The Weald | Con | absent |
aye |
David Willetts | Havant | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Rob Wilson | Reading East | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ann Winterton | Congleton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nicholas Winterton | Macclesfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Yeo | South Suffolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gregory Campbell | East Londonderry | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nigel Dodds | Belfast North | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jeffrey M. Donaldson | Lagan Valley | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
William McCrea | South Antrim | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Robinson | Belfast East | DUP | absent |
aye |
Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent | Independent | no |
aye |
Andrew Pelling | Croydon Central | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Taylor | Wyre Forest | Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Diane Abbott | Hackney North and Stoke Newington | Lab | no |
aye |
Jeremy Corbyn | Islington North | Lab | no |
aye |
Paul Farrelly | Newcastle-under-Lyme | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Mark Fisher | Stoke-on-Trent Central | Lab | no |
aye |
Neil Gerrard | Walthamstow | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Kelvin Hopkins | Luton North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Joan Humble | Blackpool North and Fleetwood | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Andrew MacKinlay | Thurrock | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab | no |
aye |
John Martin McDonnell | Hayes and Harlington | Lab | no |
aye |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab | 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 |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | no |
aye |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | no |
aye |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | no |
both |
Adrian Bailey | West Bromwich West | 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 |
Katy Clark | North Ayrshire and Arran | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Charles Clarke | Norwich South | Lab | no |
absent |
Frank Cook | Stockton North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jon Cruddas | Dagenham | Lab | no |
absent |
Claire Curtis-Thomas | Crosby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bill Etherington | Sunderland North | Lab | 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 |
Roger Godsiff | Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath | Lab | no |
absent |
Patrick Hall | Bedford | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heyes | Ashton-under-Lyne | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Meg Hillier | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jimmy Hood | Lanark and Hamilton East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Siân James | Swansea East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Martyn Jones | Clwyd South | 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 (minister) | no |
absent |
Khalid Mahmood | Birmingham, Perry Barr | Lab | no |
absent |
John Mann | Bassetlaw | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne McGuire | Stirling | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Meacher | Oldham West and Royton | Lab | no |
absent |
Alan Meale | Mansfield | Lab | no |
absent |
Ed Miliband | Doncaster North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Austin Mitchell | Great Grimsby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Edward O'Hara | Knowsley South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bridget Prentice | Lewisham East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bill Rammell | Harlow | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Reid | Airdrie and Shotts | Lab | no |
absent |
Anne Snelgrove | South Swindon | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Gavin Strang | Edinburgh East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Rudi Vis | Finchley and Golders Green | Lab | no |
absent |
Betty Williams | Conwy | Lab | no |
absent |
Shaun Woodward | St Helens South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anthony D Wright | Great Yarmouth | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ian Cawsey | Brigg and Goole | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Harry Cohen | Leyton and Wanstead | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | absent |
aye |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | absent |
aye |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Alan Simpson | Nottingham South | Lab | absent |
aye |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | absent |
aye |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Graham Allen | Nottingham North | Lab | absent |
no |
Janet Anderson | Rossendale and Darwen | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Charlotte Atkins | Staffordshire Moorlands | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Kevin Barron | Rother Valley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hugh Bayley | City of York | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Margaret Beckett | Derby South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Anne Begg | Aberdeen South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ben Bradshaw | Exeter | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Kevin Brennan | Cardiff West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gordon Brown | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Andy Burnham | Leigh | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Colin Challen | Morley and Rothwell | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Chaytor | Bury North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Clelland | Tyne Bridge | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jim Cousins | Newcastle upon Tyne Central | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Mary Creagh | Wakefield | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ann Cryer | Keighley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian Davidson | Glasgow South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Janet Dean | Burton | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Frank Dobson | Holborn and St Pancras | Lab | absent |
no |
Brian H Donohoe | Central Ayrshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Natascha Engel | North East Derbyshire | Lab | absent |
no |
Rob Flello | Stoke-on-Trent South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Bruce George | Walsall South | Lab | absent |
no |
David Hamilton | Midlothian | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Patricia Hewitt | Leicester West | Lab | absent |
no |
Kim Howells | Pontypridd | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Adam Ingram | East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow | Lab | absent |
no |
Brian Jenkins | Tamworth | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ann Keen | Brentford and Isleworth | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jim Knight | South Dorset | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Tom Levitt | High Peak | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Shahid Malik | Dewsbury | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Steve McCabe | Birmingham, Hall Green | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian McCartney | Makerfield | Lab | absent |
no |
Ann McKechin | Glasgow North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gillian Merron | Lincoln | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Margaret Moran | Luton South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Denis Murphy | Wansbeck | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jim Murphy | East Renfrewshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Doug Naysmith | Bristol North West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gwyn Prosser | Dover | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ken Purchase | Wolverhampton North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
James Purnell | Stalybridge and Hyde | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Terry Rooney | Bradford North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Lindsay Roy | Glenrothes | Lab | absent |
no |
Joan Ruddock | Lewisham, Deptford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Christine Russell | City of Chester | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Smith | Vale of Glamorgan | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Helen Southworth | Warrington South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gerry Sutcliffe | Bradford South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Mark Tami | Alyn and Deeside | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Claire Ward | Watford | Lab (minister) | absent |
tellno |
Tom Watson | West Bromwich East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Phil Wilson | Sedgefield | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Winnick | Walsall North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Danny Alexander | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | LDem | no |
aye |
John Barrett | Edinburgh West | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Tom Brake | Carshalton and Wallington | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Colin Breed | South East Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Jeremy Browne | Taunton | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Lorely Burt | Solihull | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Vincent Cable | Twickenham | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Don Foster | Bath | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew George | St Ives | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Julia Goldsworthy | Falmouth and Camborne | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Evan Harris | Oxford West and Abingdon | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Hemming | Birmingham, Yardley | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Paul Holmes | Chesterfield | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
David Howarth | Cambridge | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Christopher Huhne | Eastleigh | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Mark Hunter | Cheadle | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Susan Kramer | Richmond Park | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Michael Moore | Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Willie Rennie | Dunfermline and West Fife | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Dan Rogerson | North Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | no |
tellaye |
Adrian Sanders | Torbay | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew Stunell | Hazel Grove | LDem | no |
aye |
Matthew Taylor | Truro and St Austell | LDem | no |
aye |
Sarah Teather | Brent East | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Stephen Williams | Bristol West | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Phil Willis | Harrogate and Knaresborough | LDem (front bench) | no |
aye |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Paul Keetch | Hereford | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Paul Rowen | Rochdale | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Roger Williams | Brecon and Radnorshire | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Norman Baker | Lewes | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alan Beith | Berwick-upon-Tweed | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Annette Brooke | Mid Dorset and North Poole | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Malcolm Bruce | Gordon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paul Burstow | Sutton and Cheam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Menzies Campbell | North East Fife | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Clegg | Sheffield, Hallam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Farron | Westmorland and Lonsdale | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lynne Featherstone | Hornsey and Wood Green | LDem | absent |
aye |
Nick Harvey | North Devon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Heath | Somerton and Frome | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Martin Horwood | Cheltenham | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Simon Hughes | North Southwark and Bermondsey | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Norman Lamb | North Norfolk | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Laws | Yeovil | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Leech | Manchester, Withington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Mulholland | Leeds North West | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Pugh | Southport | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alan Reid | Argyll and Bute | LDem (front bench) | absent |
tellaye |
Bob Russell | Colchester | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Smith | West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Thurso | Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Steve Webb | Northavon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Williams | Ceredigion | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jennifer Willott | Cardiff Central | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Younger-Ross | Teignbridge | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stewart Hosie | Dundee East | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Angus MacNeil | Na h-Eileanan an Iar | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Mason | Glasgow East | SNP | absent |
aye |
Pete Wishart | Perth and North Perthshire | SNP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst UKIP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Sylvia Hermon | North Down | UUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
The measure of similarity between these two divisions is a calculation
based on a comparison of their votes.
There were
645 MPs who could have voted in both of these divisions,
and 303 voted the same way, with 46 voting in opposite ways.
There were 70 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 226 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])
=
303
(303 + 46 + 0.2x226)
=
303
394.2
=
0.769
=
76.9 %.