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Select Committee · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011

Status: Closed Opened: 4 Mar 2020 Closed: 9 Mar 2021 10 recommendations 6 conclusions 1 report

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 is the law governing the dissolution of Parliament and the calling of UK general elections. The Government has said it intends to repeal the Act and the Opposition also set this commitment out in its manifesto – but no proposals for replacing it have yet been made public. There is … Show more

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Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 HC 167 15 Sep 2020 16 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items
5 Recommendation Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parliamen… Accepted

The Committee welcomes the Government’s commitment not to rush through replacement legislation and to provide...

The Committee welcomes the Government’s commitment not to rush through replacement legislation and to provide adequate time for full scrutiny. We also appreciate the Minister’s commitment to forging cross-party support for whatever replaces the Fixed-term Parliaments Act. The first step, as the Minister 32 The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 recognised, … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government accepted the recommendation, stating it has already tabled and passed a motion for a Joint Committee to review the FTPA and conduct pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Bill, ensuring proper parliamentary consultation.
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6 Recommendation Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parliamen… Accepted

The Committee does not recommend a particular composition for the review committee beyond that set...

The Committee does not recommend a particular composition for the review committee beyond that set out in the Act. But the Committee believes that the review committee should be a Joint Select Committee, subject to parliamentary approval and not an executive-appointed committee. The Joint Committee could require additional provisions to … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government has accepted the recommendation, having already tabled and agreed a motion in the House of Commons to establish a Joint Committee of both Houses to review the FTPA and scrutinise the draft Bill.
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9 Recommendation Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parliamen… Accepted

The two-thirds ‘super majority’ required to trigger an early election under the Act can, like...

The two-thirds ‘super majority’ required to trigger an early election under the Act can, like any statutory provision, be circumvented by passing an Act of Parliament to set an election date. As was made clear to the Committee the option of such a circumvention was clearly always contemplated as a … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government agrees that the two-thirds super majority is an undesirable feature of the FTPA that hindered elections. Its draft Bill repeals the FTPA and revives prerogative powers, thereby removing the super majority requirement as advised by the committee.
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Oral evidence sessions

3 sessions
Date Witnesses
21 Jul 2020 Chloe Smith MP · Cabinet Office, Rt Hon Mark Harper MP · Department for Transport View ↗
2 Jun 2020 Professor Alison Young · University of Cambridge, Professor Gavin Phillipson · University of Bristol, Professor Petra Schleiter, Professor Philip Cowley View ↗
24 Apr 2020 Lord O’Donnell, Sir Stephen Laws View ↗

Who gave evidence

8 witnesses
WitnessOrganisationSessions
Chloe Smith MP · Minister of State Cabinet Office 1
Lord O’Donnell — 1
Professor Alison Young · Sir David Williams Professor of Public Law University of Cambridge 1
Professor Gavin Phillipson · Professor of Public Law and Human Rights University of Bristol 1
Professor Petra Schleiter — 1
Professor Philip Cowley — 1
Rt Hon Mark Harper MP Department for Transport 1
Sir Stephen Laws — 1

Correspondence

5 letters
DateDirectionTitle
6 Jul 2021 To cttee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State for the Constitution and Devoluti…
8 Dec 2020 To cttee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State for Constitution and Devolution o…
10 Nov 2020 To cttee letter from Chloe Smith MP and Lord True to Chair on the Government response to…
8 Oct 2020 To cttee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State on Common Frameworks, dated 6.10.…
24 Apr 2020 To cttee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State on Fixed-term Parliaments Act 201…