House of Commons

UK CONSTITUTION
Class: B.A. LL.B (3rd Semester)
Lecture # 6 & 7 Topic: House of Commons (L.H)
House of Commons
Introduction
British parliament is one of the oldest parliaments of modern times; therefore it is called the
mother of all parliaments. It is the supreme Law-making body of United Kingdom. The
House of Common consist totally the elected representatives. This house plays important role
regarding the legislation of UK.
 “When a minister consults the Parliament, he consults the house of Commons,: when
the Queen dissolve the Parliament, she dissolve the House of Commons . A new
Parliament is simply a new House of Commons.” Spencer Walpole
 House of Commons is the most powerful House of British Parliament.
 All Money Bills initiated from House of Commons.
 In fact, Government relies on the will of House of Commons.
Historical background of House of Commons
The roots of British Parliament can be traced back to Anglo-Saxon period in 8th Century.
Previously the King was aided by a small Council of Witan or Witenagemot or the Council of
Wise-men comprising of Clergy-men, Land-owning Barons and other advisors chosen by the
King to discuss the matters of State, Taxation and other Political Affairs.
After the Norman conquest, King William reconstituted this council with the name of
“Magnum Concilium” or “the Great Council” expanding it to include more advisors. The
First English Parliament convened in 1215 with the creation and signing of “The Magna
Carta” which established the rights of Barons to serve as consultants to the King on
Governmental matters in his Great Council. This Great Council was first referred to as
Parliament in 1236.
Later on in 1265, Simon de Montfort summoned a Parliament, to which he invited two
knights and two burgesses from each town. Subsequently in 1295, the famous Model
Parliament of King Edward-I established the practice of calling the Burgesses together with
the Knights, the Clergy and the Barons. Thus in the beginning, the Parliament met in three
groups:
The parliament met as a single chamber but voted the taxes by three divisions. The king
called the clergy min one group, the barons and knights in the second group and the
townsmen in the third group to have their consents. It was a division of parliament in three
houses. However, the three groups later shortened into two groups. One group giving birth to
the House of Lords, the other to the House of Commons and there developed a bicameral
system in England
Within Parliament, power has transferred from the Lords to the Commons. The Commons
has from as far back as the 15th century asserted the sole right to grant or withhold supply.
The changes to the public finances since the 17th century, with the end of the practice of
granting the yield of certain taxes for life, coupled with the increasing need of the
Government for money as the demands on it rose, enabled the Commons to turn that right
into a formidable weapon to demand accountability.
Composition of the House of Commons
The Lower House known as the House of Commons consists of 650 members who are
directly elected on the basis of adult suffrage from single member constituencies of four
countries. The number of membership of the House of Commons is raised after every ten
yearly census. The Party which secures a majority has the right to form a Government and,
subject to sustaining its Parliamentary majority, to carry through the programme set out in its
election Manifesto.
Qualification of Candidates
Following are the Qualification for the member of house of Common
 Must not be an Alien
 Must be above 25 years of age
 Must not be a bankrupt.
 Must not be of unsound mind
 He must not be a judge of Supreme Court
 He must not be disqualified by law
 He must not be a priest of established church of UK.
 He must not be a servant of the Crown
Term of the House of Commons
 The members of the House of Commons elected for Five years
 The Life of the House of Common i.e. term may be extended in times of emergency.
 Life may become lesser if the House of Commons dissolved by the Queen on the
advice of the Prime Minister.
Resignation From The Membership
 Members cannot resign from the House of Commons. Resignation dealt with a
famous maxim ` membership is a duty not a right`.
 Member can get himself ousted from the House by getting himself appointed to some
public office. Later, he may resign from the public office.
Sessions of the House of Commons
 No legal requirement as to length to the session of the House of Commons but meets
at least once in a year.
 The number of sitting days per session varies from year to year.
 At the end of the session, the Parliament is formally closed by the Queen and stands
still until the new session begins.
 Parliamentary year commence in November.
Powers & Functions of the House of Commons
The “supremacy of Parliament” practically implies supremacy of the House of
Commons. The powers of the House of Commons may be discussed as under:
Legislative Powers
a) Money Bill
Bills relating to finance or taxes called money Bill. All money Bills can only be
originated in the House of Commons. House of Lords can not originate this bill and
has limited powers in this regard.
b) All Public/Private Bills
All other Bills may also originate in House of Commons and It has the same powers
to pass or reject the bill as House of Lords has.
c) Confirmation of Money Bill from House of Lords
Money Bill, passed by the House of Commons, cannot be rejected by House of
Lords. It can only stop a bill for one month to debate on it and afterwards it
presumed to be passed even if it did not give its consent to bill.
d) Additional Legislative Power than House of Lords
This house has vast powers in the field of law making, there is no law that the house
cannot make or unmake. Parliamentary act of 1911 and 1949 made the House of
Commons more powerful than the House of Lords.
Financial Powers
 The house puts its final seal before any taxes rise.
 The annual budget must be discussed in the House of Commons.
 The House of Commons must approve the annual budget.
Executive /Administrative Powers
 The Executive is responsible to the popular chamber of the Parliament i.e., the House
of Commons
 The ministers remain in the offices as long as they enjoy the confidence of the House
of Commons
 The control of the House is practiced in the following ways
a) By asking information about the actions of the Govt.
b) By criticism
c) By the threat of motion of censure and
d) By the threat of motion of no confidence
Privileges of House of Common
Following are privileges of this house
a) Freedom of speech
b) This house has right to regulate their own constitution.
c) The house has also the right to exclude the stranger from this house.
d) This house has also the right of prohibiting the publication of its own debates.
e) Freedom from arrest in civil case for a period of 40 days before and after the session of
parliament but this rule does not apply on criminal case.

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UK CONSTITUTION

Class: B.A. LL.B (3rd Semester)

Lecture # 6 & 7 Topic: House of Commons (L.H)

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