Residence requirement in UK

[patrick1]

Is there any requirement for M.P.'s at all?  I have noticed many M.P.'s run for several different seats and some in which they have absolutely no roots.  Can you run in any constiutency or are there some rules?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Tragically there is no residence requirement/locality rule in the U.K... the absurdity of no such rule is demonstrated by the fact that George "I salute you're indefatiguability" Galloway (M.P for Glasgow Kelvin) appears to be sniffing around for an East London seat to run it so he can exploit Muslim voters to give himself at least *half* a prayer of being in the next Parliament...

[patrick1]

Tragically there is no residence requirement/locality rule in the U.K... the absurdity of no such rule is demonstrated by the fact that George "I salute you're indefatiguability" Galloway (M.P for Glasgow Kelvin) appears to be sniffing around for an East London seat to run it so he can exploit Muslim voters to give himself at least *half* a prayer of being in the next Parliament...

Thanks Al. I always wondered how guys like E. Powell could run as a Unionist in Norrthern Ireland or for tha mateer B. Sands running in Fermanangh when he was from Belfast and in prison at the time.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Tragically there is no residence requirement/locality rule in the U.K... the absurdity of no such rule is demonstrated by the fact that George "I salute you're indefatiguability" Galloway (M.P for Glasgow Kelvin) appears to be sniffing around for an East London seat to run it so he can exploit Muslim voters to give himself at least *half* a prayer of being in the next Parliament...

Thanks Al. I always wondered how guys like E. Powell could run as a Unionist in Norrthern Ireland or for tha mateer B. Sands running in Fermanangh when he was from Belfast and in prison at the time.

At various times in his career, Churchill was an M.P from the following cities:

Manchester
Oldham
Dundee
London (well... a suburb of London).

[KEmperor]

Well, thats something that should certainly be changed, but never will due to entrenched interests.

[YoMartin]

Since there´s party discpline, MPs from the same party generally vote together, so it´s not like they´re bargaining for the interests of their constituents. I guess a residence requirement would make more sense if MPs actually represented the interests of their own constituents and not of the country as a whole.

BTW, very interesting all the threads on british politics.

[Hatman 🍁]

It's the same thing in Canada. In fact there was a time when candidates could run in more than one district in the same election, and candidates often did so!

[Silent Hunter]

Churchill was also elected as a Tory, then a Liberal, then a Tory again.

Sands not only fought a by-election while on hunger strike, he won it too. Then he died and his agent took the seat.

It's customary practice for all parties to parachute their big people (i.e. Milburn) into safe seats or even their defectors- vis. Shaun Woodward in 2001.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Churchill was also elected as a Tory, then a Liberal, then a Tory again.

Sands not only fought a by-election while on hunger strike, he won it too. Then he died and his agent took the seat.

It's customary practice for all parties to parachute their big people (i.e. Milburn) into safe seats or even their defectors- vis. Shaun Woodward in 2001.

Milburn? You mean Mandleson right? Milburn isn't from Darlo orginally (I think he's from Tyneside. Maybe Sunderland. Still he's actually from the North East) and Darlo wasn't exactly a safe Labour seat in 1992 (when he *gained* it from the Tories).

Parachuting often occurs in specially arranged by-elections. Sometimes they work (eg. Cousins in Nuneaton, Benn in Chesterfield) sometimes they don't (Patrick Gordon Walker in Leyton).

Most amusing example of carpet-bagging was Norman Lamont in 1997... hahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It's the same thing in Canada. In fact there was a time when candidates could run in more than one district in the same election, and candidates often did so!

True. All the Liberal leaders used to run in Prince Albert, SK (back when it was the "safest Liberal seat in Canada". If they could do it now, they run in Mont Royal)

[patrick1]

Sands not only fought a by-election while on hunger strike, he won it too. Then he died and his agent took the seat.

He took Frank McGuire's old seat and then Owen Carren took over. I think MacGinnis UU won in 83.  Fermanagh/South Tyrone is the only real swing district in the north. I think demographics favors candidates natonalists now though.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Sands not only fought a by-election while on hunger strike, he won it too. Then he died and his agent took the seat.

He took Frank McGuire's old seat and then Owen Carren took over. I think MacGinnis UU won in 83.  Fermanagh/South Tyrone is the only real swing district in the north. I think demographics favors candidates natonalists now though.

There might be some stuff on: www.ark.ac.uk/elections

[minionofmidas]

Candidates still can, and do, run in several districts at the same time in India. IIRC they changed the law after the second-to-last elections and now, if you win more than one seat, you have to pay part of the government's by-election expenses. (Or maybe it was discussed, but not done - I'm not entirely sure.)

In Germany, back in the Kaiserreich, the SPD would run its best known politician August Bebel in just about all the seats it didn't have a prayer in (as well as in a safe seat in Saxony). This way, none of the local Socialists had to step up and anger his employer.

[freek]

In the Netherlands, there isn't a residence requirement. One of the members of the Tweede Kamer even lives in Belgium. .

[Peter]

Is there any requirement for M.P.'s at all?  I have noticed many M.P.'s run for several different seats and some in which they have absolutely no roots.  Can you run in any constiutency or are there some rules?

To be a candidate for election as an MP, the following requirements must be met:
1. You must be at least 21 yrs of age.
2. You must collect 10 elector's signatures from the constituency concerned.
3. You must deposit £500 with the returning officer, which is forfeit if you poll less than 5%.

Curiously, if elected, you must meet further requirements to sit in the House of Commons:
1. You must qualify for the franchise. (To see the list of requirements for the franchise, click here)
2. You must not hold certain public offices, most importantly, Judges, civil servants, armed forces, police, tribunal & commission members.

If you do not meet the requirements to sit in the Commons, you cannot be denied the right to stand as a candidate. If elected and you do not meet the requirements to sit in the Commons, your qualification can be challenged in an Electoral Court (often the High Court sits for this purpose) and you may be deprived of your seat.

[Hatman 🍁]

It's the same thing in Canada. In fact there was a time when candidates could run in more than one district in the same election, and candidates often did so!

True. All the Liberal leaders used to run in Prince Albert, SK (back when it was the "safest Liberal seat in Canada". If they could do it now, they run in Mont Royal)

Until Diefenbaker beat King