Scottish Independence Referendum: analysis of results

We have receive a couple of interesting House of Commons Library research papers into the National Library this week. An analysis of the results from the Scottish Independence, Referendum. HC Research paper 14/50 and Unemployment by constituency HC Research paper 14/49

What is an EDM?

In my last post I mentioned an EDM (Early Day Motion), EDMs are formal motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons.  Actually very few will be debated but the EDM’s allow MPs to highlight an event or a cause.  MPs can register their support by signing the individual motions.

For more information and a list of EDMs see http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/early-day-motions/

Who lets the dogs out!

As supposedly a nation of dog lovers, with over 8 million dogs kept as pets, it is worrying to read that over 100,000 strays are found each year, plus a rising number of incidences of cruelty and neglect, with many dogs out of control.


In a year there are about 210,000 people attacked by dogs in England, this includes 6,000 postal workers. The cost to the NHS of treating severe injuries caused by dogs is over £3 million and since 2007 seven people including five children have been killed by dogs in home.

These facts come from the House of Commons paper “dog control and welfare” the seventh report of session 2012-13 by the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.

This publication highlights many problems, from dog attacks on private property, which means the person attacked has no recourse to the criminal law provisions which apply to attacks on public property. There are also the problems of attacks on assistance dogs such as guide dogs, which impacts on the disabled person. There is also a problem with dogs that attack livestock, the legislation needs to be updated to include livestock such as llamas and other camelids. There is also a major concern about so-called “puppy farmers”

This parliamentary paper is well worth a read.

What's been keeping the Lords awake all night?

The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill, that's what. Ostensibly a move to restore the public's faith in parliament, the coalition government have long wanted changes in the way people vote, for different reasons: the Liberal-Democrats have always favoured proportional representation over the current "first-past-the-post" system, and the Conservatives want to limit the number of MPs. The Bill had its first reading in the Commons in July last year and is now nearing its final hearing in the Lords.

However, the Political and Constitutional Reform Select Committee commented "The Government has declared that the Parliamentary Systems and Constituencies Bill is intended as a "major step" towards restoring people's faith in Parliament. The Government's failure to consult on the provisions in this Bill risks undermining that laudable intention."
The Lords debated for a whopping 20 hours last night and today, requiring overnight arrangements in the House, amid accusations that the Labour party were deliberately obstructing the Bill.

You can get a Lord's eye-view at their blog.

Order! Order!

The Official Report [Hansard] House of Commons publication "Centenary volume 1909-2009:
An anthology of historic and memorable House of Commons speeches to celebrate the first 100 years" makes an interesting read.
The Rt. Hon. Michael J. Martin (Speaker) says in his foreword that he thinks that it was Tony Benn who described Hansard as the “only uncensored newspaper in Britain”. It starts with a concise history of how Hansard came about and then goes on to famous speeches that have been chosen by various people.
There are a few gems from unfortunate mps that have managed to say the wrong thing, for example:-
“It took the trees some time to recover as they had been chopped down.”
“The number of firearms offences has shot through the roof.”
“I have the misfortune to represent more irradiated sheep than any other hon. Member.” (Chernobyl Nuclear disaster).

The Great Reform Act

(or more correctly The Representation of the People Act of 1832) was a piece of ground-breaking legislation which began to change the country's electoral system.

The National Archives' Learning Curve website has some original sources on political protest which helped the drive towards electoral reform. The British Library's recent exhibition, "Taking Liberties", on the fight for Britain's freedoms and rights, features the Act.

And of course, the National Library also has a new feature which includes this major event. Plans of 75 Scottish towns were published to implement the Act in Scotland, and you can now see them on our Map Library's
Great Reform Acts plans and reports website, which includes the House of Commons text accompanying each map.

Gas & electricity bills....

The House of Commons Business and Enterprise Committee's investigation into the utilities market
"Energy prices, fuel poverty and Ofgem" throws up some interesting facts about why gas and electricity costs have risen so sharply recently. Concluding that the utilities companies haven't actually been fixing prices, nevertheless having only "6 big players" in the market makes it harder to introduce much in the way of competitive pricing.

Peer review

It’s surprising to learn that full sets of the House of Lords sessional papers are quite rare things; our collection is in fact only around 90% complete. A bit of history first: Lords records date from 1497, though these weren’t methodically filed until the 17th century. Printed Lords papers weren’t produced until the 18th century (though the Journal began its printed life in 1767). The disastrous fire of 1834 destroyed the Palace of Westminster, and with it a number of Lords records, though a major part of these were saved by a quick-thinking clerk throwing bundles of them out of a window into the courtyard below!

In the early 70s a project involving the British Museum (now the British Library), Board of Trade, the House of Lords Library, the Treasury, Home Office, Bodleian Library and NLS assembled as many sets of Lords papers as possible. The British Library and the House of Lords Library have complete sets; NLS has around 90%.

It is often assumed that there is little (if anything) in the Lords papers that isn’t in the Commons papers – this is not so. Some material does not feature at all in the Commons papers; for example, peers have always been able to introduce a Bill in the Lords – even if rejected, these records give an interesting insight into the concerns and influences of peers through the years. Commons and Lords can set up separate committees to examine the same subject – the evidence gathered and sources used by each may be quite different. Also, sometimes fuller versions of Commons committees may be published in the Lords papers rather than in the Commons. [1]

So, the moral of this story is, of course, don’t forget about the Lords papers! They are a huge resource, and can help to complete your research.


[1] Mallaber, Kenneth A. The House of Lords sessional papers.