Quick explainers

Short, source-linked answers to beginner questions about UK politics and Parliament.

What is PMQs?

PMQs is the regular Commons session where MPs question the Prime Minister.

An MP represents a House of Commons constituency and appears in Parliament's public records.

Commons votes are often recorded as divisions, counted as ayes and noes.

Whips are party organisers who help coordinate voting and attendance in Parliament.

A constituency is the local area that elects one MP to the House of Commons.

A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law before it becomes an Act.