Parliamentary procedure

Parliamentary procedure
Name	Parliamentary procedure
Type	Legislative practice
Origin	United Kingdom
Established	17th century

Parliamentary procedure is the assemblage of rules, customs, and practices guiding deliberative bodies such as Westminster system, United States Congress, European Parliament, Canadian House of Commons, and Australian Senate. It structures debate among figures like Winston Churchill, Nancy Pelosi, Bernard Mannes Baruch, Margaret Thatcher, and Nelson Mandela in institutions such as House of Commons of the United Kingdom, United States Senate, Lok Sabha, Bundestag, and Japan National Diet. Practitioners draw on authorities and manuals associated with names like Edmund Burke, Thomas Jefferson, Henry Martyn Robert, and texts used in assemblies from Magna Carta era institutions to modern bodies including United Nations General Assembly and NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

History and origins

Origins trace to medieval and early modern assemblies including the Curia Regis, Model Parliament, Estates-General (France), and provincial councils such as the Cortes of León. Influences include legal traditions embodied in Common law courts, procedural precedents from the Long Parliament, and guidance from figures like John Hampden and Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War. American development intertwined with colonial legislatures and framers at events like the Philadelphia Convention and debates involving James Madison and George Washington. Nineteenth- and twentieth-century diffusion occurred through imperial institutions such as the British Empire and through international organizations formed after World War I and World War II, including procedures adopted by bodies like the League of Nations and later Council of Europe.

Principles and objectives

Core objectives emphasize orderly deliberation in bodies ranging from the United States House of Representatives to the Senate of Canada: ensuring equal participation exemplified by leaders such as Susan B. Anthony advocating rights; protecting minority opinions as seen in rulings from courts like the Supreme Court of the United States; promoting efficient decision-making in settings like the International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization; and maintaining legitimacy in institutions such as the International Criminal Court. Principles derive from classic parliamentary writers and reformers including Thomas Jefferson, James Wilson, and procedural standardizers like Henry Martyn Robert who influenced practice in assemblies such as the Ohio General Assembly and corporate boards modeled on legislative norms.

Key concepts and terminology

Essential terms appear in manuals and cases involving figures like Edmund Burke and John Marshall. Notions include quorum requirements found in constitutions such as the Constitution of India, majority thresholds employed in votes for offices like Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and President of the United States, and types of votes used in chambers including the House of Lords and Knesset. Familiar technical items reference precedents from the Marbury v. Madison era, standing orders modeled on practices from the British Parliament, and parliamentary authorities like Cushing's Manual and The Oxford History of Parliament that influenced legislatures such as the New Zealand Parliament and assemblies of federations like the Russian Federation.

Common motions and procedures

Typical motions derive from practices in legislatures such as the United States House of Representatives, the Australian House of Representatives, and the Irish Dáil Éireann. Examples include motions to adjourn used in sessions presided over by figures like John Bercow; motions of no confidence that toppled governments including those involving Gough Whitlam and Rafic Hariri; motions to table or recommit appearing in debates in the European Parliament and the Scottish Parliament; and procedures for filibuster seen during confrontations in the United States Senate and in episodes involving Strom Thurmond. Committees, as in the Standing Committee on Finance or the Senate Judiciary Committee, follow reporting rules, amendment procedures, and voting protocols influenced by precedents from inquiries such as those into Watergate and Suez Crisis.

Roles and responsibilities

Actors include presiding officers like the Speaker of the House of Commons, the President pro tempore of the United States Senate, and the Lord Speaker; party leaders such as Tony Blair, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Angela Merkel; and clerks and secretaries modeled on staff in the House of Representatives of the Philippines and the German Bundestag. Responsibilities encompass enforcing standing orders as courts like the European Court of Human Rights have considered, recognizing members for debate as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha does, managing agendas similar to the Rules Committee (United States House of Representatives), and ensuring records like the Hansard or the Congressional Record accurately reflect proceedings.

Variations by country and system

Procedural families include the Westminster system, the Congressional system of the United States, and consensus-based models such as those in the Swiss Federal Assembly and the Scandinavian Riksdag traditions. Civil-law influenced parliaments like the French National Assembly and the Italian Parliament have distinct standing orders compared with federal systems in the Australian Parliament and the Canadian Parliament. Supranational bodies—the European Parliament, the African Union Commission, and the Organisation of American States—adapt rules to multi-state negotiation contexts, while post-conflict and transitional legislatures in places like South Africa and Iraq integrate hybrid procedures influenced by international advisers and documents such as those drafted after the Dayton Agreement.

Criticisms and reforms

Critiques have been raised by commentators and reformers including Alexis de Tocqueville, John Stuart Mill, Jeremy Bentham, and modern analysts in think tanks like Chatham House and Brookings Institution regarding opacity, domination by party leadership, and procedural obstruction exemplified in events like the Government of India crisis or contentious sessions of the U.S. Congress. Reforms have ranged from codification efforts inspired by Henry Martyn Robert to technological modernization such as live streaming adopted by the European Parliament and digital voting piloted by legislatures including the Estonian Riigikogu and innovations after incidents like the 2009 European Parliament election controversies. Ongoing debates engage actors from ombudsmen and judicial bodies including the Supreme Court of India to internal reform commissions modeled on precedents like the Select Committee on Procedure.

Category:Legislative procedure