Source: The Guardian, internet edition

Act of Parliament

A bill passed by the Houses of Parliament and signed by the Queen.

Address

When the House of Commons wishes to make a point to the Monarch, it does so by an address. It is taken from the Commons by a whip and presented to the Monarch beginning with the words, "That a humble address be presented to her Majesty." The Monarch will answer the message, and will return the message to the Commons by a Government whip, or to the Lords by the Lord Chamberlain.

Adjournment of the House

An adjournment is requested by an MP in the House of Commons to terminate the days proceedings in the House of Commons. If passed, the orders of the day are processed, and then the days proceedings terminate. There is no set time for finishing the business in the House.

Admonition

A reprimand made by the Speaker of the House of Commons if an MP does something wrong.

Amendment

An alteration proposed in a motion or a bill. These amendments may be voted on, and if passed, they superseded what is written in the bill itself.

Back-Bencher

An MP who does not hold office in the Government, or any senior position in the leading opposition party. The term applies to both the Lords and the Commons.

Bar of the House

The line at the entrance to the House of Commons which non-MPs must not cross. The line is marked by a leather strip.

Bill

A draft Act of Parliament presented to either the Commons or the Lords to vote upon. If the vote is successful in all Houses, and it gets Royal Assent, then it becomes an Act.

Bill, Private Member's

A bill introduced by a backbencher.

Black Rod

An officer of the Royal Household, appointed to look after the doorkeepers and messengers of the House of Lords. He also issues the orders for entry to the Stranger's Gallery.

Budget

The Chancellor of the Exchequer's Financial Statement. The Budget used to be held at the beginning of each financial year on April 1st, but it is now held in November.

Catching the Speaker's Eye

Any MP wishing to speak in the House of Commons must stand, and hope that the Speaker sees him, and gives him permission to speak.

Clause

A sub-division of an Act or a Bill.

Count

The House of Commons can be closed by the speaker if a quorum of 40 MPs are not present in the House of Commons.

Dissolution

When the Houses of Commons and Lords are dissolved by the proclamation of the Monarch. Today, it is the Prime Minister who informs the Monarch of when to dissolve Parliament.

Father of the House

The member of the House of Commons who has the longest period of being an MP. The present father of the House (in 1999) is the former Prime Minister, Sir Edward Heath.

Front-Benches

The benches on each side which are nearest the centre Table of the Commons. The Government sit to the right of the speaker, and the opposition shadow Ministers to the left.

Hansard

The name of the written reports of the House of Commons, first produced by Thomas Curson Hansard. Students at Keele University can't read Hansard because the library has ended its subscription.

Houses of Parliament

The Palace which houses the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The present building mainly dates from the 1800s, where it replaced an earlier building which caught fire. St. Stephens Chapel is an original building dating back to medieval times.

Maiden Speech

An MP's first speech in the House of Commons

Order Paper

A timetable of the days events in the House of Commons and the House of Lords. These are available on the day from the Houses of Parliament.

Pairs

If an MP wishes to be absent from the Chamber thereby missing a vote, he should come to an arrangement with an opposition MP, who will not vote either. This means that the final vote is decreased by one for each side. Occasionally the party stops the pairing process, for example, Margaret Thatcher and John Smith when they were leaders of the Opposition.

Points of Order

A member can bring to the attention of the Speaker any technical and procedural breaches of order. The member must stand up, even if a member is making a speech, and tell the Speaker his complaint. The Speaker will then adjudicate and take the appropriate action if necessary.

Question Time

This is the time when the Government Ministers have to answer oral questions to the members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The well-known Prime Minister's questions is on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the other days are rotated amongst the other Government departments. The length of time varies, usually it is around an hour, but Prime Ministerial Questions last for just fifteen minutes. Question Time finishes at 15:30, and then the business for the day follows, unless there are any points of order.

Recess

This is the period in which the Houses of Parliament do not sit, i.e., the periods between Parliaments.

Teller

These are appointed by the Speaker to count the number of Ayes and Noes.

Ten-Minute Rule

This is where all the comments and statements by members should last no more than ten minutes. The speaker will time the speech, and stop it after the ten minutes has finished.

Usual Channels

When a politician uses these terms, it generally means that it is gone through the Government or Opposition whips.

Vote

The act of voting in Parliament is properly known as the division.

Whips

In both Houses, those members who make sure their fellow party members vote according to party wishes are called the whips. The whips is a recognised by the Crown, and the post comes with an increased salary to normal back-benchers.