The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011

Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 4 Mar 2020 Closed: 9 Mar 2021 Parliament page
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 … Read more
10 Recommendations
6 Conclusions
1 Report
3 Oral sessions
5 Letters
3 Events
Activity timeline 10 events
6 Jul
2021
Correspondence
9 Dec
2020
Report published
8 Dec
2020
Correspondence
10 Nov
2020
Correspondence
8 Oct
2020
Correspondence
15 Sep
2020
Report published
21 Jul
2020
Oral evidence
2 Jun
2020
Oral evidence
24 Apr
2020
Oral evidence
24 Apr
2020
Correspondence
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
21 Jul 2020
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The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011
Chloe Smith MP · Cabinet Office Rt Hon Mark Harper MP · Department for Transport
2 Jun 2020
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The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011
Professor Alison Young · University of Cambridge Professor Gavin Phillipson · University of Bristol Professor Petra Schleiter Professor Philip Cowley
24 Apr 2020
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Fixed-term Parliament Act 2011
Lord O’Donnell Sir Stephen Laws
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 HC 167 15 Sep 2020 16 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
16 results
1 Conclusion Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act clearly achieved the purpose of removing the discretion of the Prime...
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act clearly achieved the purpose of removing the discretion of the Prime Minister to call an election at a time of his or her choosing. It removed the ability of the incumbent party of government to time … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the committee's conclusion that future legislation should maintain fairness by removing the Prime Minister's discretion to call an election. It argues such a power does not provide an electoral advantage and plans to return to a system where Parliament is dissolved on the PM's advice.
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2 Conclusion Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
It is clear that the Act has shifted the balance of power from the executive...
It is clear that the Act has shifted the balance of power from the executive to the legislature. It is less clear if the right balance of power has yet been struck. While there should not be a return to … Read more
Government Response
The government states its draft Bill will repeal the FTPA and revive the Prime Minister's prerogative powers for dissolution, returning to a system where the PM chooses the election timing. This rejects the committee's call for careful consideration of power balance and avoidance of executive dominance.
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3 Conclusion Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The Act has clearly also altered the default expectation with regards to the timing of...
The Act has clearly also altered the default expectation with regards to the timing of elections. The expectation is now that, where the Government has a working majority, a Parliament will normally last a full five-year term. Given that there … Read more
Government Response
The government plans to repeal the FTPA and revive the Prime Minister's power to call early elections at their choosing, while retaining a five-year maximum term. This rejects the committee's preferred default expectation that parliaments should normally run their full five-year term, with exceptions only for deadlock or no confidence.
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4 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
It is clear that one of the main purposes of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011...
It is clear that one of the main purposes of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 was to provide assurance to the Coalition partners that an early election would not be called. The fact that the Coalition Government was maintained for … Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the specific recommendation to establish a system that explicitly accommodates different government types, instead favouring a return to pre-FTPA flexibility. It notes it awaits the Joint Committee's findings on the system of dissolution.
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5 Recommendation Accepted
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
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, … Read more
Government Response
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 Accepted
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
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 … Read more
Government Response
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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7 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The question of whether or not the dissolution prerogative can be restored is a complex...
The question of whether or not the dissolution prerogative can be restored is a complex one, which involves fundamental constitutional principles. It clearly was the intention of the Government in 2011 to abolish the prerogative, but the wording of the … Read more
Government Response
The government's draft Bill makes express provision to revive the prerogative powers relating to dissolution, including an ouster clause to make their exercise non-justiciable. This rejects the committee's recommendation to set election arrangements directly in statute rather than attempting to revive the prerogative.
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8 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
While not all members of the Committee would oppose such a move, it is also...
While not all members of the Committee would oppose such a move, it is also cognisant that reviving the prerogative would mean taking a power that is set out in statute and regulated by Parliament and handing it back to … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to establish a new system, instead confirming its draft Bill explicitly revives the prerogative powers for dissolution of Parliament and calling elections as they existed before the FTPA, including an ouster clause for non-justiciability.
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9 Recommendation Accepted
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
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 … Read more
Government Response
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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10 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
It is clear that the inability for the House of Commons to set the date...
It is clear that the inability for the House of Commons to set the date combined with an apparent lack of trust in the Prime Minister, contributed to the paralysis last autumn. There was support in our evidence for the … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation for a review committee to consider mechanisms for the House of Commons to set the early election date. It states that the date will continue to be set by Royal Proclamation on the advice of the Prime Minister, without parliamentary approval.
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11 Recommendation Not Addressed
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The principle that the Government must have, and retain, the confidence of the elected House...
The principle that the Government must have, and retain, the confidence of the elected House of Commons is fundamental to our system of Parliamentary democracy. The Committee fully endorses the findings of our predecessor Committee on the operation of confidence … Read more
Government Response
The government provided no substantive response to the committee's recommendation to endorse the findings of a predecessor committee on the operation of confidence.
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12 Conclusion Not Addressed
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
It is clear that some mix of statue and convention is the best way for...
It is clear that some mix of statue and convention is the best way for this area to be governed, but this requires the actors involved to act in ways which engender trust.
Government Response
The government provided no substantive response to the committee's conclusion about the ideal mix of statute and convention for governance and the need for trust.
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13 Conclusion Not Addressed
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act is compatible with the confidence principle and has not divorced confidence...
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act is compatible with the confidence principle and has not divorced confidence from dissolution. If the House of Commons wanted to trigger dissolution by removing confidence from the Government, it has that power under the Act. However, … Read more
Government Response
The government provided no substantive response to the committee's conclusion about the FTPA's compatibility with the confidence principle and the resulting unacceptable situations.
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14 Conclusion Not Addressed
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
Providing the House of Commons with the power to set the date of an election...
Providing the House of Commons with the power to set the date of an election could provide one route to avoid unnecessary paralysis at times of deadlock.
Government Response
The government's response is boilerplate text and does not address the conclusion.
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15 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
Changing the current arrangements to allow the Government to designate a vote a matter of...
Changing the current arrangements to allow the Government to designate a vote a matter of confidence that if lost would trigger a general election—an established practice under the old arrangements—could be a retrograde step. If it were included in any … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the committee's assessment of the FTPA and its caution regarding restoring the government's ability to designate confidence votes. It asserts that restoring the link between confidence and dissolution is 'vital' for an effective democracy, but states it will also carefully consider the conclusions of the Joint Committee.
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16 Recommendation Rejected
Sixth Report - The Fixed-term Parl…
The Supreme Court’s decision in the Miller-Cherry case highlights that at the heart of the...
The Supreme Court’s decision in the Miller-Cherry case highlights that at the heart of the UK’s constitutional arrangements is a fine but constantly-shifting balance of convention, principle and law, that provides clear guidance, but also flexibility. These arrangements, when working … Read more
Government Response
The government rejects the recommendation to include the power of prorogation in statute in the review committee's terms of reference, stating that prorogation is a separate issue from the FTPA and their Bill is narrowly focused on dissolution.
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Government Response AI assessment · 16 of 10 classified
Accepted 3
Not Addressed 4
Rejected 9
Total 10 recs + 6 conclusions
Correspondence 5 letters
6 Jul 2021 To committee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State for the Constitution and Devolution on Government’s Bill to repeal the Fixed-term Parliaments Act, dated 1.7.21
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8 Dec 2020 To committee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State for Constitution and Devolution on Fixed-term Parliaments Act, dated 1.12.20
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10 Nov 2020 To committee letter from Chloe Smith MP and Lord True to Chair on the Government response to FtPA Report dated 02.11.20
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8 Oct 2020 To committee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State on Common Frameworks, dated 6.10.20
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24 Apr 2020 To committee Letter from Chloe Smith MP, Minister of State on Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, dated 30.3.20
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