Palace Despatches: An Insight into the Halls of Westminster

Jack McClure
Jul 30, 2017 · 4 min read

I must confess: I am addicted to politics. For years I have been on top of the news cycle, watching and reading different sources with different viewpoints, all the while developing my own. Every time a classmate brings up a controversial topic I gain a rush of euphoria in anticipation of the lively discussion that is to follow. So it was to my great excitement that I succeeded in achieving a work experience placement at the House of Commons, the elected body of political representatives within the UK. I was placed in the Vote Office, a department with the task of managing and distributing documents for MPs. Here are some of my little insights I have accumulated throughout my time:

  1. MPs look more normal than you’d expect.

Walking through the Palace and the more modern addition of Portcullis House I was treated with the sight of multiple Members, including those in the Cabinet. Seeing them on TV is one experience; they look as prepared and polished as film stars. Seeing them stride down the corridors of the House is quite another; they look more like regular people, being either shorter than you expect or looking older than you expect. Seeing them “in situ” as I was handing them documents or sitting near them at the House cafeteria further dispels any pretence of the image they wish to project to the public through TV.

2. For Members, Parliament is not a 24/7 operation.

One of the things that struck me on the Monday I arrived was that there wasn’t a lot going on, with hardly any bills or amendments being discussed. However what I learned was that most Members only come in for a few days of the week to accommodate those in constituencies far from Westminster. Members from Scotland, for example, come down to London on Tuesdays, stay in their London residences for the time they’re there voting on bills and return to their constituency on Friday, when the House is closed. The main event that everyone arrives for is Prime Minister’s Questions, both because it is quite a jovial event and because it is the occasion most likely that their constituents are watching BBC Parliament and want to make sure their MP is doing their job.

3. The machine behind House operations is formidable.

Being in the Vote Office showed me how much work goes into maintaining a tight ship. For example, questions submitted to Secretaries of State and the Prime Minister are edited by clerks and reworded into more appropriate language before being submitted onto an online system, where they can be checked. The importance of this checking is enormous. One afternoon I was given a chance to write my own questions impersonating Members to the Prime Minister (which were subsequently deleted.) One such question was me writing as Jacob Rees-Mogg to Theresa May inquiring about government subsidies for cows wearing tweed. Or when it comes to debates and bills introduced in the House, the Vote Office have to prepare loads of printed copies of white papers, bills and statistics based on what they see on the Order of the Day, the basic schedule for events in the House. More importantly, they have to keep copies of bills ready but unseen until they are introduced and announced in the House, at which point in time a flurry of members exit the Chamber and dash to the Vote Office desk to pick up one. All written recording of speech inside the Chamber is sent down, adapted from shorthand, formatted into official Hansard templates and printed for records. Definitely a lot of work.

4. Watch Prime Minister’s Questions live if you can.

If you’re anything like me you’re on the Iplayer every Wednesday to see how the gang at Westminster are doing by watching PMQs. It’s always good to see witty retorts, brilliant comments by the Speaker and the general raucousness of the Chamber. However, watching it live is a much more rewarding experience. Aside from seeing the members you might recognise sitting a few meters away from you, there is a greater sense of intimacy, a greater sense that you are involved in the weekly grilling of the PM. After all, your reaction to certain comments is simultaneous to those of the Members unlike on TV. One observation is that the Chamber is much smaller than one expects, and in fact there are less seats available than there are MPs, prompting many to stand near the entrance as I saw on that day. It certainly provides the spectacle I expected.

These are my takeaways from my time at the House of Commons, and I shall look forward to my next post.

The Aftertaste

An online publication written for and by the young people of today, contextualising everything from current affairs to pop culture.

Jack McClure

Written by

Political junkie and meme veteran with a passion for law, politics, philosophy and current affairs.

The Aftertaste

An online publication written for and by the young people of today, contextualising everything from current affairs to pop culture.

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