What if the Opposition never turned up
Discussion
OK so labour have won a super majority in parliament and now can enact their vision of shaping the UK.
So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
You'd end up with the work of the Loyal Opposition being done by the House of Lords. Also don't forget that most of the work in parliament is done in Committee, and many of these are chaired by non Labour MPs. If they didn't turn up either the committee work would stop, or worse, the Labour members would have free hand.
I mean, it's worked for Sinn Fein for over a century. Might make uncomfortable bedfellows-in-principle for the Conservatives, though.
Of course, SF are elected on the basis that they won't take their seats. Buy they do still perform all the expected constituency work - they just can't make statements/questions in the house or meet ministers/MPs in person in parliament.
As a slight aside, I am 'enjoying' (in an schadenfreude sense) how many posts on NP&E are now suggesting that democracy is overrated and Parliament is a sham. They started a few weeks ago and gave really ramped up since the election and now have a second stage ignition with the result from France.
What happened to the undercurrent of sovereignty and taking back control? Imagine the outrage if anyone suggested that a Labour/left-wing opposition just decided not to turn up because a majority government has supreme power! (BTW, there is no such thing as a supermajority in the British parliament- that's a term imported from America by the Conservatives to try and scare people.)
I never thought NP&E fostered so many radical anarchists masquerading as centre-right moderate Tories!
Of course, SF are elected on the basis that they won't take their seats. Buy they do still perform all the expected constituency work - they just can't make statements/questions in the house or meet ministers/MPs in person in parliament.
As a slight aside, I am 'enjoying' (in an schadenfreude sense) how many posts on NP&E are now suggesting that democracy is overrated and Parliament is a sham. They started a few weeks ago and gave really ramped up since the election and now have a second stage ignition with the result from France.
What happened to the undercurrent of sovereignty and taking back control? Imagine the outrage if anyone suggested that a Labour/left-wing opposition just decided not to turn up because a majority government has supreme power! (BTW, there is no such thing as a supermajority in the British parliament- that's a term imported from America by the Conservatives to try and scare people.)
I never thought NP&E fostered so many radical anarchists masquerading as centre-right moderate Tories!
Collectingbrass said:
You'd end up with the work of the Loyal Opposition being done by the House of Lords. Also don't forget that most of the work in parliament is done in Committee, and many of these are chaired by non Labour MPs. If they didn't turn up either the committee work would stop, or worse, the Labour members would have free hand.
YepWould also look like throwing the toys out of the pram. Prime Ministers questions is a circus these days but parliament has a role to play outside of this.
Gecko1978 said:
OK so labour have won a super majority in parliament and now can enact their vision of shaping the UK.
So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
Even if a super majority were a thing in the UK Parliament Labour don't have one.So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
abzmike said:
Well the Conservative government reduced the HoC to a sideshow by announcing virtually everything - including budget proposals - via the Mail and Telegraph every weekend, so wouldn’t be much different.
New Labour were no different. Campbell leaked and briefed all over the place, just to different media outlets.Lots of reasons:
- Two or three committees are always chaired by opposition MPs so some of the most important work will go undone.
- There is even less chance to get a point into the media if they don't turn up to PMQs.
- They won't be able to get ministers to confirm things in parliament where they have to tell the truth.
- If they abstain on everything, Labour can say that the Conservatives agree on everything.
- They can still influence legislation in small ways by raising issues before they come up.
- Labour will say their MPs don't do anything which means they won't gain as many seats at the next election - especially important for Lib Dems who rely on their work ethic to keep their seats.
- They would just look pathetic.
Mr Penguin said:
Lots of reasons:
Some more:- Two or three committees are always chaired by opposition MPs so some of the most important work will go undone.
- There is even less chance to get a point into the media if they don't turn up to PMQs.
- They won't be able to get ministers to confirm things in parliament where they have to tell the truth.
- If they abstain on everything, Labour can say that the Conservatives agree on everything.
- They can still influence legislation in small ways by raising issues before they come up.
- Labour will say their MPs don't do anything which means they won't gain as many seats at the next election - especially important for Lib Dems who rely on their work ethic to keep their seats.
- They would just look pathetic.
- there are no assigned seats in House of Commons so Labour MPs can just fill the opposition benches.
- the default voting procedure in the Chamber is to do a voice vote and only proceed to a division if someone says No (usually always). Without divisions we have no information about exactly who voted for what and thus you cannot point to someone's voting record later on.
- the best chance for backbench MPs to collar a minister about a constituency is often during a division.
- some of the theatre around PMQs is as much about the MP getting coverage in their local press by bringing up a constituency matter. Sometimes it is just superficial, sometimes it's intended to shame the government into acting.
- while opposition amendments rarely succeed when they're aimed at wrecking legislation, many more are adopted by the government when they're making sensible cross-party points.
- it's not just the government vs the opposition. It's also opposition vs opposition. All it takes is for one opposition party to break ranks, turn up to Parliament and criticise the other opposition parties for dereliction of duty.
So to be clear in my tongue in cheek scenario, MPs attend all committees, they vote when required, they don't go to PMQs but can attend at other times.
Social and Mainstream media are likely more effective ways of criticising the Government than PMQs in any cases.
An all opposition MPs stick to this.
So for example if the front page of the Sun or 1 million views on face book has opposition MPs making clear the public don't want (random example) a large on shore wind farm in the middle of the lake district. The minister in government can't say they did not know there was opposition etc.
In my mind I was picturing the PM hectoring an empty audience. I suspect there are rules about attending to be honest
Social and Mainstream media are likely more effective ways of criticising the Government than PMQs in any cases.
An all opposition MPs stick to this.
So for example if the front page of the Sun or 1 million views on face book has opposition MPs making clear the public don't want (random example) a large on shore wind farm in the middle of the lake district. The minister in government can't say they did not know there was opposition etc.
In my mind I was picturing the PM hectoring an empty audience. I suspect there are rules about attending to be honest
Edited by Gecko1978 on Monday 8th July 10:11
Gecko1978 said:
So to be clear in my tongue in cheek scenario, MPs attend all committees, they vote when required, they don't go to PMQs but can attend at other times.
Social and Mainstream media are likely more effective ways of criticising the Government than PMQs in any cases.
An all opposition MPs stick to this.
So for example if the front page of the Sun or 1 million views on face book has opposition MPs making clear the public don't want (random example) a large on shore wind farm in the middle of the lake district. The minister in government can't say they did not know there was opposition etc.
In my mind I was picturing the PM hectoring an empty audience. I suspect there are rules about attending to be honest
Pretty much all PMs hate PMQs and dread it every week, even when they've got some ammunition to fire at the opposition. The PM would be the happiest person in the Chamber (and the Speaker a close second!) if PMQs was rendered irrelevant. Social and Mainstream media are likely more effective ways of criticising the Government than PMQs in any cases.
An all opposition MPs stick to this.
So for example if the front page of the Sun or 1 million views on face book has opposition MPs making clear the public don't want (random example) a large on shore wind farm in the middle of the lake district. The minister in government can't say they did not know there was opposition etc.
In my mind I was picturing the PM hectoring an empty audience. I suspect there are rules about attending to be honest
Edited by Gecko1978 on Monday 8th July 10:11
MesoForm said:
Just scrap PMQs, it's not like the Prime Minister actually answers the Questions and the only people that seem to care are people being paid to cover it in the media.
The people who have been involved with it tend to say it's useful because its the PM's chance to find out what is happening by saying "you need to tell me the truth so I know how to spin it at PMQs"Hill92 said:
Pretty much all PMs hate PMQs and dread it every week, even when they've got some ammunition to fire at the opposition. The PM would be the happiest person in the Chamber (and the Speaker a close second!) if PMQs was rendered irrelevant.
It's stupid. I'm sure there's perfectly good candidates for PM and DPM that would turn the job down purely because they didn't want to be the centre of that particular staged show. Nice idea at the time.
vaud said:
abzmike said:
Well the Conservative government reduced the HoC to a sideshow by announcing virtually everything - including budget proposals - via the Mail and Telegraph every weekend, so wouldn’t be much different.
New Labour were no different. Campbell leaked and briefed all over the place, just to different media outlets.Gecko1978 said:
OK so labour have won a super majority in parliament and now can enact their vision of shaping the UK.
So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
A little like kicking over the stumps and taking your ball home in a huff? That would just about sum up the current tory party. So given they have such a wide gap what if the opposition did the following.
Never turned up to PMQ's literally empty benches but instead spent time in their constituency working for people making a difference every day. Parliament is theater at best and you can hold the PM to account via the media both mainstream and social. So why bother turning up why not instead engage with people who gave you their vote. When the budget is announced an empty chamber no questions etc after all people don't get an insight because the opposition asks a question but because the BBC SKY etc do the analysis. Simply then say "why waste time in parliament when (insert media) have shown how little a budget offers".
I suspect after weeks or months of no shows but active campaigning and work in constituencies opposition parties might actually gain a sucess from this.
Thoughts?
I imagine if the tories don't function as the opposition, the LDs and the SNP and others would get more 'question time'.
Both of the PMQ flavour and the BBC show?
There were times in covid that the SNP looked more like and opposition than Labour did.
OTOH, maybe if everyone else keeps quiet, Labour will start arguing among themselves?
Both of the PMQ flavour and the BBC show?
There were times in covid that the SNP looked more like and opposition than Labour did.
OTOH, maybe if everyone else keeps quiet, Labour will start arguing among themselves?
Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff