Comparison of Divisions: Opposition Day — [15th Allotted Day] — Cost of Living — 24 Jun 2008 at 18:50 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
I beg to move,
That this House expresses its deep concern at the rapidly rising cost of living; recognises the pressures this places on wage-earners and pensioners, especially those on the lowest incomes; acknowledges the danger to the UK economy of entrenching inflation through excessive wage claims in response to rising prices while understanding the concern of people who find their living standards squeezed; and therefore regrets the inability of the Government to provide assistance and support to hard-pressed families because of what the OECD describes as 'excessively loose fiscal policy' pursued by this Government over the years of economic growth.
I beg to move, To leave out from "House" to the end of the Question, and to add instead thereof:
"notes the significant increases in world prices, with the oil price rising 80 per cent. and food prices up 60 per cent. in the year to May 2008; notes that the Governor of the Bank of England's letter to the Chancellor dated 16th June 2008 said that 1.1 per cent. of the 1.2 per cent. increase in inflation over recent months was due to world food and energy prices, and that the Government was right to tackle the rises with action on an international level, including urgently looking for a successful conclusion to the Doha round of negotiations in the World Trade Organisation and examining the impact of biofuels on food production; supports the Government's global leadership on these issues; recognises the pressure that these increases in world prices put on family budgets; further notes the measures that the Government will continue to take to support families and individuals, including pensioners and businesses, throughout the UK, including through extra tax credits, increased tax allowances, winter fuel payments and increases in child benefit; further notes that the most important support for working families is a strong and stable economy; and supports the Government's actions that have delivered unemployment, inflation and interest rates all at historically low levels, helping millions of families into stable home-ownership and sustainable employment."
Question put, That the original words stand part of the Question:-
The House divided: Ayes 189, Noes 297.
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 Butterfill | Bournemouth West | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
James Gray | North Wiltshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Oliver Heald | North East Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Heathcoat-Amory | Wells | 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 |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Mates | East Hampshire | 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 |
John Stanley | Tonbridge and Malling | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Ancram | Devizes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
James Arbuthnot | North East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Bacon | South Norfolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gregory Barker | Bexhill and Battle | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Henry Bellingham | North West Norfolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Benyon | Newbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Bottomley | Worthing West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
James Brokenshire | Hornchurch | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Angela Browning | Tiverton and Honiton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alistair Burt | North East Bedfordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bill Cash | Stone | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Christopher Chope | Christchurch | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Clark | Tunbridge Wells | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown | Cotswold | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Curry | Skipton and Ripon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alan Duncan | Rutland and Melton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Philip Dunne | Ludlow | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Fabricant | Lichfield | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Liam Fox | Woodspring | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Roger Gale | North Thanet | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Gauke | South West Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Chris Grayling | Epsom and Ewell | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Justine Greening | Putney | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Charles Hendry | Wealden | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Adam Holloway | Gravesham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Howard | Folkestone and Hythe | Con | absent |
aye |
Gerald Howarth | Aldershot | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Howell | Henley | Con | absent |
aye |
Jeremy Hunt | South West Surrey | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bernard Jenkin | North Essex | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Lidington | Aylesbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Theresa May | Maidenhead | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Ottaway | Croydon South | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Ruffley | Bury St Edmunds | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lee Scott | Ilford North | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nicholas Soames | Mid Sussex | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Caroline Spelman | Meriden | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Tredinnick | Bosworth | Con | absent |
aye |
Andrew Tyrie | Chichester | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ed Vaizey | Wantage | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ann Widdecombe | Maidstone and The Weald | Con | 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 |
Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent | Independent | no |
aye |
Richard Taylor | Wyre Forest | Independent (front bench) | no |
aye |
Andrew Pelling | Croydon Central | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Diane Abbott | Hackney North and Stoke Newington | Lab | 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 |
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 |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | 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 |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | no |
aye |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab | no |
aye |
Julie Morgan | Cardiff North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Nick Palmer | Broxtowe | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Nick Raynsford | Greenwich and Woolwich | Lab | no |
aye |
Andy Reed | Loughborough | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Alan Simpson | Nottingham South | Lab | no |
aye |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | no |
aye |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | no |
aye |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | no |
both |
Adrian Bailey | West Bromwich West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
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 |
Richard Caborn | Sheffield Central | Lab | no |
absent |
Ronnie Campbell | Blyth Valley | Lab | 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 |
Frank Cook | Stockton North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Frank Field | Birkenhead | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mike Gapes | Ilford South | Lab (minister) | 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 |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Lindsay Hoyle | Chorley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Eric Illsley | Barnsley Central | 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 |
Judy Mallaber | Amber Valley | Lab (minister) | 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 |
Ed Miliband | Doncaster North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Austin Mitchell | Great Grimsby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne Moffat | East Lothian | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Kali Mountford | Colne Valley | Lab (minister) | 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 |
Jamie Reed | Copeland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Reid | Airdrie and Shotts | Lab | no |
absent |
John Robertson | Glasgow North 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 |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Neil Turner | Wigan | Lab (minister) | 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 |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | absent |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab | absent |
aye |
John Martin McDonnell | Hayes and Harlington | Lab | absent |
aye |
Steve Pound | Ealing North | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | absent |
aye |
Bob Ainsworth | Coventry North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Charlotte Atkins | Staffordshire Moorlands | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hugh Bayley | City of York | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Borrow | South Ribble | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gordon Brown | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Paul Clark | Gillingham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Crausby | Bolton North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Cummings | Easington | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Quentin Davies | Grantham and Stamford | whilst Lab (front bench) | absent |
no |
Natascha Engel | North East Derbyshire | Lab | absent |
no |
Paul Goggins | Wythenshawe and Sale East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Dai Havard | Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Kevan Jones | North Durham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Fiona Mactaggart | Slough | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Shahid Malik | Dewsbury | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian McCartney | Makerfield | Lab | absent |
no |
Rosemary McKenna | Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alan Milburn | Darlington | Lab | absent |
no |
Jim Murphy | East Renfrewshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Lindsay Roy | Glenrothes | Lab | absent |
no |
Jonathan R Shaw | Chatham and Aylesford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Andrew Slaughter | Ealing, Acton and Shepherd's Bush | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Smith | Vale of Glamorgan | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Phyllis Starkey | Milton Keynes South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jack Straw | Blackburn | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Emily Thornberry | Islington South and Finsbury | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Don Touhig | Islwyn | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Derek Twigg | Halton | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Derek Wyatt | Sittingbourne and Sheppey | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Sandra Gidley | Romsey | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Lembit Öpik | Montgomeryshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Paul Rowen | Rochdale | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Roger Williams | Brecon and Radnorshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Alan Beith | Berwick-upon-Tweed | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lorely Burt | Solihull | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Menzies Campbell | North East Fife | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Clegg | Sheffield, Hallam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Evan Harris | Oxford West and Abingdon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paul Holmes | Chesterfield | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Michael Moore | Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Mulholland | Leeds North West | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Pugh | Southport | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Stunell | Hazel Grove | LDem | absent |
aye |
Sarah Teather | Brent East | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Williams | Ceredigion | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Adam Price | Carmarthen East and Dinefwr | PC (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Angus Robertson | Moray | SNP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Michael Weir | Angus | SNP (front bench) | no |
aye |
Pete Wishart | Perth and North Perthshire | SNP (front bench) | no |
aye |
John Mason | Glasgow East | SNP | 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
644 MPs who could have voted in both of these divisions,
and 390 voted the same way, with 27 voting in opposite ways.
There were 59 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 168 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])
=
390
(390 + 27 + 0.2x168)
=
390
450.6
=
0.866
=
86.6 %.