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