Comparison of Divisions: Orders of the Day — Clause 34 — Post-charge questioning: England and Wales — 19 Nov 2008 at 18:30 with Division No. 104 on 29 Apr 2009 at 15:49
(Swap the two divisions around).
I beg to move amendment (a) to the Lords amendment.
Question put, That the amendment be made:-
The House divided: Ayes 208, Noes 284.
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) |
Richard Shepherd | Aldridge-Brownhills | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Tami | Alyn and Deeside | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Judy Mallaber | Amber Valley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Geoff Hoon | Ashfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heyes | Ashton-under-Lyne | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Sandra Osborne | Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Michael Clapham | Barnsley West and Penistone | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Mann | Bassetlaw | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mike Wood | Batley and Spen | Lab | no |
aye |
Martin Linton | Battersea | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Patrick Hall | Bedford | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Peter Robinson | Belfast East | DUP | absent |
aye |
Nigel Dodds | Belfast North | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | SDLP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gregory Barker | Bexhill and Battle | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Frank Field | Birkenhead | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Gisela Stuart | Birmingham, Edgbaston | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Richard Burden | Birmingham, Northfield | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Joan Humble | Blackpool North and Fleetwood | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Gordon Marsden | Blackpool South | Lab | no |
aye |
Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent | Independent | no |
aye |
David Anderson | Blaydon | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Crausby | Bolton North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Joe Benton | Bootle | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Tobias Ellwood | Bournemouth East | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Butterfill | Bournemouth West | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Gerry Sutcliffe | Bradford South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Roger Williams | Brecon and Radnorshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Eric Pickles | Brentwood and Ongar | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ian Cawsey | Brigg and Goole | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Desmond Turner | Brighton, Kemptown | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Julie Kirkbride | Bromsgrove | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Nick Palmer | Broxtowe | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
John Bercow | Buckingham | whilst Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Thurso | Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Chris McCafferty | Calder Valley | Lab | no |
absent |
Harriet Harman | Camberwell and Peckham | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Julie Morgan | Cardiff North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Eric Martlew | Carlisle | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Tom Brake | Carshalton and Wallington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Spink | Castle Point | whilst Independent (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Stephen Dorrell | Charnwood | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Hunter | Cheadle | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Dame Cheryl Gillan | Chesham and Amersham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Iain Duncan Smith | Chingford and Woodford Green | Con | absent |
aye |
Lindsay Hoyle | Chorley | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Shona McIsaac | Cleethorpes | Lab | no |
aye |
Martyn Jones | Clwyd South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Bob Russell | Colchester | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Betty Williams | Conwy | Lab | no |
absent |
Jamie Reed | Copeland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown | Cotswold | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Bob Ainsworth | Coventry North East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Claire Curtis-Thomas | Crosby | Lab | no |
absent |
Jon Cruddas | Dagenham | Lab | no |
absent |
Tim Boswell | Daventry | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Michael Ancram | Devizes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ed Miliband | Doncaster North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Steve Pound | Ealing North | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Jo Swinson | East Dunbartonshire | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Gregory Campbell | East Londonderry | DUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Moffat | East Lothian | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jim Murphy | East Renfrewshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Greg Knight | East Yorkshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nigel Waterson | Eastbourne | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alistair Darling | Edinburgh South West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Colin Burgon | Elmet | Lab | no |
absent |
Eleanor Laing | Epping Forest | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Austin | Erith and Thamesmead | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Ben Bradshaw | Exeter | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Julia Goldsworthy | Falmouth and Camborne | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Rudi Vis | Finchley and Golders Green | Lab | no |
absent |
Michael Howard | Folkestone and Hythe | Con | absent |
aye |
Michael Jack | Fylde | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Edward Leigh | Gainsborough | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Robertson | Glasgow North West | Lab | no |
absent |
Peter Viggers | Gosport | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Martin Caton | Gower | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Austin Mitchell | Great Grimsby | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anthony D Wright | Great Yarmouth | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Nick Raynsford | Greenwich and Woolwich | Lab | no |
aye |
Anne Milton | Guildford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Meg Hillier | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Linda Riordan | Halifax | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Greg Hands | Hammersmith and Fulham | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Glenda Jackson | Hampstead and Highgate | Lab | absent |
aye |
Bill Rammell | Harlow | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Phil Willis | Harrogate and Knaresborough | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gareth Thomas | Harrow West | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Willetts | Havant | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Greg Pope | Hyndburn | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Mike Gapes | Ilford South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Danny Alexander | Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Don Touhig | Islwyn | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Malcolm Rifkind | Kensington and Chelsea | Con | absent |
aye |
Edward Davey | Kingston and Surbiton | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Prescott | Kingston upon Hull East | Lab | no |
absent |
Gordon Brown | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Edward O'Hara | Knowsley South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Jimmy Hood | Lanark and Hamilton East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Fabian Hamilton | Leeds North East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
John Battle | Leeds West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Keith Vaz | Leicester East | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Peter Soulsby | Leicester South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Bridget Prentice | Lewisham East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Harry Cohen | Leyton and Wanstead | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Michael Connarty | Linlithgow and East Falkirk | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Louise Ellman | Liverpool, Riverside | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Peter Kilfoyle | Liverpool, Walton | Lab | no |
absent |
Robert Wareing | Liverpool, West Derby | whilst Independent | absent |
aye |
Andy Reed | Loughborough | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Kelvin Hopkins | Luton North | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Theresa May | Maidenhead | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Ann Widdecombe | Maidstone and The Weald | Con | absent |
aye |
John Whittingdale | Maldon and East Chelmsford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Gerald Kaufman | Manchester, Gorton | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
John Leech | Manchester, Withington | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Alan Meale | Mansfield | Lab | no |
absent |
Robert Marshall-Andrews | Medway | Lab | absent |
aye |
Caroline Spelman | Meriden | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Keith Simpson | Mid Norfolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Peter Luff | Mid Worcestershire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Stuart Bell | Middlesbrough | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ashok Kumar | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Lembit Öpik | Montgomeryshire | LDem | aye |
absent |
Colin Challen | Morley and Rothwell | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Angus MacNeil | Na h-Eileanan an Iar | SNP (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Patrick Mercer | Newark | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Jim Cousins | Newcastle upon Tyne Central | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Doug Henderson | Newcastle upon Tyne North | Lab | no |
absent |
Paul Farrelly | Newcastle-under-Lyme | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Jessica Morden | Newport East | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Ian Paisley | North Antrim | DUP | aye |
absent |
Dan Rogerson | North Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | absent |
tellaye |
Sylvia Hermon | North Down | UUP (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Malcolm Moss | North East Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Menzies Campbell | North East Fife | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Oliver Heald | North East Hertfordshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Shailesh Vara | North West Cambridgeshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Taylor | North West Leicestershire | Lab (minister) | no |
both |
James Gray | North Wiltshire | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Brian Binley | Northampton South | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Charles Clarke | Norwich South | Lab | no |
absent |
Gordon Banks | Ochil and South Perthshire | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Huw Irranca-Davies | Ogmore | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Alistair Carmichael | Orkney and Shetland | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Horam | Orpington | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Andrew Smith | Oxford East | Lab | no |
aye |
Douglas Alexander | Paisley and Renfrewshire South | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
David Maclean | Penrith and The Border | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mike Hancock | Portsmouth South | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Paul Truswell | Pudsey | Lab | no |
aye |
Martin Salter | Reading West | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Karen Buck | Regent's Park and Kensington North | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Nigel Evans | Ribble Valley | Con | aye |
absent |
Paul Rowen | Rochdale | LDem (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Andrew Rosindell | Romford | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Nick Hurd | Ruislip - Northwood | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Kenneth Clarke | Rushcliffe | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
John Greenway | Ryedale | Con | aye |
absent |
Richard Caborn | Sheffield Central | Lab | no |
absent |
David Blunkett | Sheffield, Brightside | Lab | absent |
no |
Paddy Tipping | Sherwood | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Colin Breed | South East Cornwall | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Borrow | South Ribble | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Patrick Cormack | South Staffordshire | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Tim Yeo | South Suffolk | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Anne Snelgrove | South Swindon | Lab | no |
absent |
John Denham | Southampton, Itchen | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Shaun Woodward | St Helens South | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Anne McGuire | Stirling | Lab | no |
absent |
Mark Fisher | Stoke-on-Trent Central | Lab | no |
aye |
Bill Cash | Stone | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
John Maples | Stratford-on-Avon | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
David Drew | Stroud | Lab (minister) | aye |
no |
John Gummer | Suffolk Coastal | Con | absent |
aye |
Bill Etherington | Sunderland North | Lab | no |
absent |
Siân James | Swansea East | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Richard Younger-Ross | Teignbridge | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Mark Pritchard | The Wrekin | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Andrew MacKinlay | Thurrock | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
John Stanley | Tonbridge and Malling | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Anthony Steen | Totnes | Con (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Matthew Taylor | Truro and St Austell | LDem | absent |
aye |
Vincent Cable | Twickenham | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
David Clelland | Tyne Bridge | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Kate Hoey | Vauxhall | Lab (minister) | absent |
aye |
Bruce George | Walsall South | Lab | absent |
no |
Neil Gerrard | Walthamstow | Lab (minister) | no |
aye |
Denis Murphy | Wansbeck | Lab (minister) | absent |
no |
Mike Hall | Weaver Vale | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
David Heathcoat-Amory | Wells | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Tim Farron | Westmorland and Lonsdale | LDem (front bench) | absent |
aye |
Neil Turner | Wigan | Lab (minister) | no |
absent |
Humfrey Malins | Woking | Con (front bench) | aye |
absent |
Peter Bottomley | Worthing West | Con (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 398 voted the same way, with 19 voting in opposite ways.
There were 52 MPs who didn't vote in either division,
and 177 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])
=
398
(398 + 19 + 0.2x177)
=
398
452.4
=
0.880
=
88.0 %.