House of Commons

   The lower and dominant chamber of Parliament, elected by the people in periodic general elections. The House, as it is also known, has its origins in the thirteenth century. In the nineteenth its superiority over the unelected upper house was established. Today its main tasks are representation, deliberation, legislation, authorising expenditure and scrutiny. The watchdog function over the actions and policies of the Executive has assumed growing importance in recent years, select committees playing a key role in making government accountable to elected representatives of the people. The House comprises 646 Members of Parliament (MPs), each of whom is elected to represent a singlemember constituency. Almost without exception, each MP belongs to a political party. The House is organised on a party basis, with Labour and the Conservatives dominating parliamentary proceedings. There are MPs belonging to a number of minor parties who may affect the calculations of parliamentary arithmetic in a vote and the organisation of the House. The House is presided over by the Speaker.

   As an elected chamber, the House is not and is unlikely to ever be a microcosm of the wider British society. MPs are overwhelmingly white, male, middle class and middleaged. Members are paid and for most of them member- ship is a full-time occupation, although some combine it with some other professional activity. Recent years have seen the growing importance of the so-called career politician. Along with this greater emphasis upon professionalism, there has been a demand for better pay and conditions. The Commons may compare adversely with many other legislatures in these respects, but the working environment has significantly improved in recent decades.

   Further reading: P. Norton, Parliament in British Politics, Palgrave, 2005