Comparison of Divisions: Business of the House — 12 Nov 2008 at 14:18 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
I beg to move,
That, at this day's sitting, the Speaker shall put the Questions necessary to dispose of proceedings on:
Question put accordingly :-
The House divided: Ayes 258, Noes 223.
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 inverted 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) | no |
absent |
Tim Boswell | Daventry | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
James Clappison | Hertsmere | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Nigel Evans | Ribble Valley | Con | no |
absent |
James Gray | North Wiltshire | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Oliver Heald | North East Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
David Heathcoat-Amory | Wells | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
John Horam | Orpington | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Michael Jack | Fylde | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Peter Luff | Mid Worcestershire | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Humfrey Malins | Woking | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Michael Mates | East Hampshire | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Francis Maude | Horsham | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Malcolm Moss | North East Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
David Mundell | Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
John Stanley | Tonbridge and Malling | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Robert Walter | North Dorset | Con | no |
absent |
David Wilshire | Spelthorne | Con (front bench) | no |
absent |
Crispin Blunt | Reigate | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Bottomley | Worthing West | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Angela Browning | Tiverton and Honiton | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown | Cotswold | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Geoffrey Cox | Torridge and West Devon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Davies | Monmouth | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stephen Dorrell | Charnwood | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tobias Ellwood | Bournemouth East | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Francois | Rayleigh | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Garnier | Harborough | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paul Goodman | Wycombe | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Chris Grayling | Epsom and Ewell | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Lancaster | North East Milton Keynes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew Lansley | South Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Julian Lewis | New Forest East | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Lidington | Aylesbury | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Milton | Guildford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Eric Pickles | Brentwood and Ongar | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Hugh Robertson | Faversham and Mid Kent | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Spring | West Suffolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gary Streeter | South West Devon | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Hugo Swire | East Devon | Con | absent |
aye |
Ian Taylor | Esher and Walton | Con | absent |
aye |
Edward Timpson | Crewe and Nantwich | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Tredinnick | Bosworth | Con | absent |
aye |
Theresa Villiers | Chipping Barnet | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ben Wallace | Lancaster and Wyre | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Angela Watkinson | Upminster | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ann Widdecombe | Maidstone and The Weald | Con | absent |
aye |
David Willetts | Havant | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Yeo | South Suffolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Iris Robinson | Strangford | DUP (front bench) | no |
absent |
David Simpson | Upper Bann | DUP (front bench) | no |
absent |
William McCrea | South Antrim | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Richard Taylor | Wyre Forest | Independent (front bench) | aye |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Ian Cawsey | Brigg and Goole | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Harry Cohen | Leyton and Wanstead | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Paul Farrelly | Newcastle-under-Lyme | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Mark Fisher | Stoke-on-Trent Central | Lab | aye |
aye |
Neil Gerrard | Walthamstow | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Kelvin Hopkins | Luton North | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | aye |
aye |
Andrew MacKinlay | Thurrock | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab | aye |
aye |
John Martin McDonnell | Hayes and Harlington | Lab | aye |
aye |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab | aye |
aye |
Julie Morgan | Cardiff North | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Steve Pound | Ealing North | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Nick Raynsford | Greenwich and Woolwich | Lab | aye |
aye |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | aye |
aye |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | aye |
aye |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | aye |
both |
John Austin | Erith and Thamesmead | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Adrian Bailey | West Bromwich West | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
John Battle | Leeds West | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Karen Buck | Regent's Park and Kensington North | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Richard Burden | Birmingham, Northfield | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Stephen Byers | North Tyneside | Lab | aye |
absent |
Ronnie Campbell | Blyth Valley | Lab | aye |
absent |
Martin Caton | Gower | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Michael Clapham | Barnsley West and Penistone | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Katy Clark | North Ayrshire and Arran | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Frank Cook | Stockton North | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Jon Cruddas | Dagenham | Lab | aye |
absent |
Frank Field | Birkenhead | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Paul Flynn | Newport West | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Mike Gapes | Ilford South | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Ian Gibson | Norwich North | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Mike Hall | Weaver Vale | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Patrick Hall | Bedford | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Doug Henderson | Newcastle upon Tyne North | Lab | aye |
absent |
David Heyes | Ashton-under-Lyne | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Meg Hillier | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Jimmy Hood | Lanark and Hamilton East | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Eric Illsley | Barnsley Central | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Siân James | Swansea East | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Lynne Jones | Birmingham, Selly Oak | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Peter Kilfoyle | Liverpool, Walton | Lab | aye |
absent |
Ivan Lewis | Bury South | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Denis MacShane | Rotherham | Lab | aye |
absent |
Judy Mallaber | Amber Valley | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
John Mann | Bassetlaw | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Chris McCafferty | Calder Valley | Lab | aye |
absent |
Anne McGuire | Stirling | Lab | aye |
absent |
Alan Meale | Mansfield | Lab | aye |
absent |
Edward O'Hara | Knowsley South | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Greg Pope | Hyndburn | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Bridget Prentice | Lewisham East | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
John Prescott | Kingston upon Hull East | Lab | aye |
absent |
Jamie Reed | Copeland | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
John Robertson | Glasgow North West | Lab | aye |
absent |
Martin Salter | Reading West | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Marsha Singh | Bradford West | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Anne Snelgrove | South Swindon | Lab | aye |
absent |
Gavin Strang | Edinburgh East | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Gisela Stuart | Birmingham, Edgbaston | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Neil Turner | Wigan | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Betty Williams | Conwy | Lab | aye |
absent |
Shaun Woodward | St Helens South | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Anthony D Wright | Great Yarmouth | Lab (minister) | aye |
absent |
Diane Abbott | Hackney North and Stoke Newington | Lab | absent |
aye |
Jeremy Corbyn | Islington North | Lab | absent |
aye |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Joan Humble | Blackpool North and Fleetwood | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | absent |
aye |
Nick Palmer | Broxtowe | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Andy Reed | Loughborough | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Alan Simpson | Nottingham South | Lab | absent |
aye |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | absent |
aye |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | absent |
aye |
Bob Ainsworth | Coventry North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Janet Anderson | Rossendale and Darwen | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hilary Armstrong | North West Durham | Lab | absent |
no |
Charlotte Atkins | Staffordshire Moorlands | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Vera Baird | Redcar | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Edward Balls | Normanton | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Celia Barlow | Hove | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Joe Benton | Bootle | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Hazel Blears | Salford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Blunkett | Sheffield, Brightside | Lab | 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 |
Jim Cousins | Newcastle upon Tyne Central | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alistair Darling | Edinburgh South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jim Devine | Livingston | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Frank Dobson | Holborn and St Pancras | Lab | absent |
no |
Brian H Donohoe | Central Ayrshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Frank Doran | Aberdeen North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Caroline Flint | Don Valley | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Tom Harris | Glasgow South | Lab | absent |
no |
Mark Hendrick | Preston | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Stephen Hepburn | Jarrow | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Heppell | Nottingham East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Beverley Hughes | Stretford and Urmston | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Brian Iddon | Bolton South East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Adam Ingram | East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow | Lab | absent |
no |
Alan Johnson | Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Eric Joyce | Falkirk | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gerald Kaufman | Manchester, Gorton | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jane Kennedy | Liverpool, Wavertree | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Sadiq Khan | Tooting | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Kidney | Stafford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jim Knight | South Dorset | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Stephen Ladyman | South Thanet | Lab | absent |
no |
Sarah McCarthy-Fry | Portsmouth North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian McCartney | Makerfield | Lab | absent |
no |
Alan Milburn | Darlington | Lab | absent |
no |
Jessica Morden | Newport East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
George Mudie | Leeds East | 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 |
Terry Rooney | Bradford North | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Lindsay Roy | Glenrothes | Lab | absent |
no |
Joan Ryan | Enfield North | Lab | absent |
no |
Alison Seabeck | Plymouth, Devonport | Lab | absent |
no |
Jonathan R Shaw | Chatham and Aylesford | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Siôn Simon | Birmingham, Erdington | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Geraldine Smith | Morecambe and Lunesdale | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Jack Straw | Blackburn | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gerry Sutcliffe | Bradford South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Gareth Thomas | Harrow West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Desmond Turner | Brighton, Kemptown | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Lynda Waltho | Stourbridge | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Claire Ward | Watford | Lab (minister) | absent |
tellno |
Tony Wright | Cannock Chase | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Sandra Gidley | Romsey | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Mike Hancock | Portsmouth South | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Paul Keetch | Hereford | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Charles Kennedy | Ross, Skye and Lochaber | LDem | no |
absent |
Lembit Öpik | Montgomeryshire | LDem | no |
absent |
Paul Rowen | Rochdale | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Jo Swinson | East Dunbartonshire | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Roger Williams | Brecon and Radnorshire | LDem (front bench) | no |
absent |
Danny Alexander | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tom Brake | Carshalton and Wallington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Paul Burstow | Sutton and Cheam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Lorely Burt | Solihull | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Clegg | Sheffield, Hallam | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Harvey | North Devon | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Susan Kramer | Richmond Park | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Dan Rogerson | North Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | absent |
tellaye |
Bob Russell | Colchester | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Matthew Taylor | Truro and St Austell | LDem | absent |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | aye |
aye |
Mark Durkan | Foyle | SDLP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Eddie McGrady | South Down | SDLP | aye |
absent |
Angus MacNeil | Na h-Eileanan an Iar | SNP (front bench) | no |
absent |
Michael Weir | Angus | SNP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst UKIP (front bench) | no |
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
646 MPs who could have voted in both of these divisions,
and 18 voted the same way, with 382 voting in opposite ways.
There were 46 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 200 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 on opposite sides.
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])
=
382
(382 + 18 + 0.2x200)
=
382
440
=
0.868
=
86.8 %.