New Parline: the IPU’s Open Data Platform (beta)
Your one-stop-shop for information about national parliaments

United Kingdom

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House of Commons

This is a bicameral parliament. Switch to theHouse of Lords
Political system Political systems: Presidential, Parliamentary, Presidential-Parliamentary, Monarchy, Communist, Transitional.
Parliamentary system
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Structure of parliament Structure of parliament: Unicameral, bicameral
Bicameral
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IPU membership Current membership status
Yes
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Data on women

empty

Basic information > About parliament

Speaker

Speaker
John Bercow (Male)
Year of birth
1963

Secretary general

Secretary general
John Benger (Male)
Notes Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
Sworn in on 1 March 2019.

Members

Current number of members, by sex
Men The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
442
Women The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
208
See historical data for this field.
Percentage of women Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
32% See historical data for this field.

Age

Average age of all members Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
50.50
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Youngest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
23
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Youngest member
Mhairi Black (Female)
Oldest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
86
Oldest member
Dennis Skinner (Male)
Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
241 See historical data for this field.
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
408 See historical data for this field.
Total per sex
Total of male
458 See historical data for this field.
Total of female
191 See historical data for this field.
Total per age interval
18-20
1 See historical data for this field.
21-30
19 See historical data for this field.
31-40
110 See historical data for this field.
41-45
111 See historical data for this field.
46-50
0 See historical data for this field.
51-60
102 See historical data for this field.
61-70
205 See historical data for this field.
71-80
83 See historical data for this field.
81-90
15 See historical data for this field.
91 and over
3 See historical data for this field.
Number of members, by age
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Totals per age interval 1 19 110 111 0 102 205 83 15 3
Total <= 45: 241 Total >= 46: 408
Male 0 13 69 79 0 71 142 69 12 3 458
Female 1 6 41 32 0 31 63 14 3 0 191
Percentage of members, by age
Age as last election or renewalOverallMaleFemale
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger3.08%2%1.08%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger20.03%12.63%7.4%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger37.13%24.81%12.33%

Reserved seats and quotas

Electoral quota for women Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Yes
Compare data of this field.
Notes
Voluntary political party quotas.
Elections > Election results

Candidates

Total number of candidates Total number of people who registered as candidates for election. Does not include people who stood as candidates to become "substitute members".
3,304
Number of female candidates Number of female candidates
973
Percentage of women candidates The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
29.45%
Number of candidates, by sex
Number of female candidates Number of female candidates
973
Percentage of women candidates The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
29.45%

Results

Members elected, by sex
Number of men elected
442
Number of women elected
208
Percentage of women elected The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women elected in the election and the number of seats at stake at the election.
32%
Number of women after election or renewal, by mode of designation
Women Directly Elected
208

New legislature

Total number of men after the election The total number of male parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
442
Total number of women after the election The total number of female parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
208
First Speaker of the new legislature
First Speaker of the new legislature First name of the Speaker of the new legislature following the election or renewal.
John Bercow (Male)
Date of election
13.06.2017
Elections > Historical data on women

Women's suffrage

Women’s right to vote
Right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1918
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Restricted
Detail of restrictions Suffrage: Restrictions detail
Women over 30
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
(Voting age for men 21)
Right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1928
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
Full voting equality with men. Age restriction lowered to 21 and now 18
Women’s right to stand for election
Right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1918
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Restricted
Detail of restrictions Stand for Election: Restrictions detail
Women over 30 only
Notes Stand for Election: Additional Notes on right to stand for election
(Voting age for men 21)
Right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1928
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Stand for Election: Additional Notes on right to stand for election
Full voting equality with men. Age restriction lowered to 21 and now 18
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament Year in which first woman entered parliament
1918

Women Heads of State or Government

Woman Heads of State or Government
Not available
See historical data for this field.
Parliamentary bodies > Caucuses

Women

Caucus name
Parliamentary Group for Women in Parliament
Date of creation
01.2010
Formal or informal
Informal
The caucus is open to male MPs
No
The caucus is cross-party
No
There are rules governing the functioning of the caucus
Yes
Issues dealt with by the caucus
- More female representation in politics, portrayal of women in the media.<br> <br> Creation of the new parliamentary select committee on Women and Equality on 3 June 2015 as recommanded by the Group in their 2014 report: "Improving Parliament: Creating a better and more representative House". <br> Link to this report:<br> http://appgimprovingparliamentreport.co.uk/download/APPG-Women-In-Parliament-Report-2014.pdf
The caucus has a strategic plan or plan of action
Yes
The caucus has a communication plan
No