I have had several constituents email me about remote voting in the House of Commons and I wanted to provide you with the latest update I have from the Government, as well as my own position on the matter.
Firstly, I welcome the announcement by the Prime Minister that MPs who are shielding or unable to attend Parliament in person should be able to cast their vote by proxy. This is a hugely positive decision, for the challenging weeks and months ahead. We are all having to adapt to living and working differently, which is why I am glad to see progress has been made on this issue by providing some flexibility to those who face particular challenges in coming to Westminster in person.
This was followed by an order passed by the House on June 4th on Virtual Participation in Proceedings, which will allow certain Members to participate virtually in proceedings on Questions, Urgent Questions and Statements. Virtual participation under this order is not open to all Members, as was the case with virtual participation in hybrid proceedings previously. It is available for Members “who have self-certified that they are unable to attend at Westminster for medical or public health reasons related to the pandemic”. It is for each Member to certify that “that they are unable to attend at Westminster for medical or public health reasons related to the pandemic” and it is quite properly an individual decision.
I believe it is really important, as MPs, we can catch up where possible in Parliament, including sharing ideas, thoughts, feedback etc where possible. This is often in and around votes as all MPs have very varied schedules and commitments. A socially distanced line is, whilst inconvenient, simply a fact of life for many of us, beyond just Westminster, going forward – we have always had to queue for votes, it’s just now you can see us! Proxy voting is extremely useful when employed appropriately, whilst we can still hold online, virtual meetings to keep the mechanics of Parliament and Government running as smoothly as possible. This and ‘pairing’ of colleagues is key to getting Parliament back to work in a changed but safe environment.
I believe it is vital MPs continue to continue fulfilling their wider duties as much as they are able, without putting themselves or others at risk. Voting is a serious matter and where MPs are able, we should physically participate in what is a crucial part of British democracy – we have to continue to do our job. Queuing for longer than usual should not get in the way of this. I agree with my colleagues in Government that, whilst the full virtual Parliament was necessary initially during the peak weeks of the pandemic, it does not allow MPs to fully hold the Government to account and we should all welcome this greatly.