Actions not words - our new approach to voting records

Today we’re announcing changes that mean that summaries of MPs’ voting records — with a few exceptions — now only use votes that are about action rather than words (e.g. votes moving legislation through Parliament rather than making statements).?

We’re also experimenting with including decisions taken without votes being included for the first time. This includes major bits of legislation, for example the votes that passed the UK’s 2050 net zero target. We’re calling these decisions taken “on the nod” without a vote, ‘agreements’.

We’ve rewritten our information pages to reflect the new approach, and explain how voting works in the UK’s different Parliaments and Assemblies.?

Here’s what Louise Crow, our Chief Exec, and Alex, our Senior Researcher, had to say about the change:?

?? Chief Exec, Louise Crow "Whatever happens in the election, we want MPs in the next Parliament to meet the standards and expectations of the people who elected them. As an independent organisation, we can offer analysis that would always be impossible for Parliament itself to offer”

?? Senior Researcher Alex Parsons “Voting records are an important tool in understanding the decisions our representatives have made. A vote might not always represent an MP’s personal opinion, but it does represent their impact in the political process.”

Find out more about the changes, and find links to give us your feedback, on the blog: https://www.mysociety.org/2024/04/23/improving-the-focus-of-theyworkforyous-voting-summaries/