Commons

Behind the Scenes with the Official Report

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During the February recess, the Official Report (Hansard) is offering Members’ staff an opportunity to learn how parliamentary proceedings are edited in the Official Report.

Spend an hour and a half with us and find out:

  • How Hansard reports MPs’ speeches
  • Which debates are read the most by constituents and how to share parliamentary contributions online
  • Who to contact with queries about the Official Report and where to read speeches before publication

We finish with a tour of the Hansard offices and the Press Gallery.

We will be holding in-person sessions on the parliamentary estate on Tuesday 17th and Wednesday 18th February. Priority will be given to new Members’ staff, but all are welcome.

For more information, to book a place or to join Hansard’s mailing list for future sessions, contact hansardoutreach@parliament.uk

Dissolution Guidance Published

A view of Parliament from Gt Peter St
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Dissolution is the official term for the end of a Parliament before a general election. When Parliament is dissolved every seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant. MPs immediately revert to being members of the general public and those who wish to become MPs again must stand for election as candidates.

The House has now published its revised dissolution guidance, which aims to help Members and Members’ staff understand the rules in place and the support available to them before, during and after the next election, including what to expect during the dissolution period.

You can find  the guidance on the new parliamentary intranet, ParliNet, and we have published our own page on w4mp to track the guidance.

Please note that the guides etc may be updated before the election and so you should refer to ParliNet and not any stored web pages or PDFs for the latest guidance.