Mike Amesbury, MP for Runcorn and Helsby, was found guilty of assault and has been sentenced to 10 weeks in prison suspended for 24 months. Under the provisions of the legislation: “Recall of MPs Act 2015” a parliamentary recall petition is likely to be initiated. This article is a guide to the procedure which will soon begin and a history of the legislation in the 10 years since it was passed.
According to the House of Commons Library, “Recall is where the electorate in an area can trigger a special election to remove an elected representative before the end of their term. In the UK only MPs can be recalled”.
Under the rules of Recall of MPs Act 2015, there are three circumstances that can lead to the recall of an MP:
● Conviction in the UK of any offence and sentenced or ordered to be imprisoned or detained, after all appeals have been exhausted. This condition applies if the sentence is suspended. Note, that if an MP is sentenced for a period greater than 12 months, the individual is automatically disqualified and a by-election occurs.
● The Standards Committee recommending and the House agreeing a suspension of at least 10 sitting days of Parliament or at least 14 days if sitting days not specified.
● Convicted of an offence under the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009 (making false or misleading parliamentary allowances claims). In this case, a conviction need not lead to a custodial sentence.
If one of these conditions is met the Speaker of the House must notify the local returning officer. They are known as a petition officer when dealing with a recall petition.
Constituency of Runcorn and Helsby
Mike Amesbury, MP for Runcorn and Helsby, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault against one of his constituents, and was given an immediate custodial sentence of 10 weeks on 24 February, three days later this was reduced on appeal to a suspended sentence. Hence, as a custodial sentence is now in force, a recall petition will happen.
The Recall Act states: “As soon as reasonably practicable after becoming aware that the first, second or third recall condition has been met in relation to an MP, the Speaker must give notice of that fact to the petition officer for the MP’s constituency.” Given the wording of the act, we should expect the Speaker to inform the Returning Officer of the constituency of Runcorn and Helsby that a recall petition is initiated. For the purpose of the recall petition, he is now known as the Petition Officer.
Once the recall petition is open, it remains in place for 6 weeks. Electors in the constituency who wish to sign the petition can do this in person at designated signing stations. It is also possible, as in a general or by-election, to do this by post or by proxy. If 10% or more of the eligible electors sign the petition, the recall threshold is achieved, and the Petition Officer will inform the Speaker. On giving this notice, the seat automatically becomes vacant, and a by-election must be held. If the threshold of 10% is not met, the MP retains his seat because the recall has failed.
The recalled MP may stand as a candidate in the by-election but the timing of this is decided by the House of Commons. Custom has it that the political party that previously held the seat, determines when to initiate the required by-election.
A Brief History of Recall Petitions
There have been six recall petitions since the passing of the Recall of MPs Act 2015.
Ian Paisley: Democratic Unionist Party MP for North Antrim, has the honour of initiating the first recall petition. He was suspended from the House of Commons for 30 sitting days, beginning on 4 September 2018; he broke paid advocacy rules by receiving hospitality from the Sri Lankan government without declaring it. The resulting recall petition received 9.4% of the electorate, therefore it failed. Ian Paisley continued as an MP, winning his seat again, before finally being defeated in the 2024 General Election.
Fiona Onasanya: Labour MP for Peterborough, was convicted for perverting the course of justice and sentenced in December 2018 to three months in prison. Her appeal failed on 5 March 2019. The subsequent recall was successful, with over 25% of registered voters signing the petition. Fiona Onasanya did not contest the by-election. The by-election in June 2019, returned Lisa Forbes, the Labour candidate. However, she lost her seat to the Conservatives in the September 2019 general election.
Chris Davies: Conservative MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, pleaded guilty on 24 April 2019 to two offences under the Parliamentary Standards Act concerning false and misleading accounting of expenses. The recall was successful, with 19% of the electorate supporting the petition. Mr Davies stood as the Conservative candidate for the subsequent by-election, which he lost.
Margaret Ferrier: Rutherglen and Hamilton West was accused of a breach of Covid-19 regulations in October 2020, and suspended by the SNP. Despite substantial pressure to resign, she continued sitting as an independent MP. In 2021 she was convicted of “culpable and reckless conduct” but was not given a custodial sentence (thus condition 1 of the Recall act was not triggered). Following further pressure, she finally referred herself to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards in 2023 and was then suspended for 30 days. The recall petition was successful with 14.7% of registered voters signing. Margaret Ferrier decided not to stand again. Despite the SNP suspending Ferrier early in the process and selecting a new candidate, the seat was won by the Labour Party.
Peter Bone: Conservative MP for Wellingborough, was suspended in October 2023 for 6 weeks, after the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards upheld five
allegations of bullying and one of sexual misconduct. The petition was successful with 13.5% of the people signing. Peter Bone did not contest the by-election, which the Labour candidate won.
Scott Benton: Conservative MP for Blackpool South, was suspended from Parliament for 35 days on 14th December 2023, after reporting himself to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. Undercover reporters from The Times recorded him apparently leaking confidential information to the gambling industry. After appeals failed, a recall petition was triggered. Scott Benton resigned as an MP before the petition was completed. The following by-election was won by Labour.
What Happens Now?
Mike Amesbury’s immediate future will determined by a recall petition, which is mandated by the Recall of M.P.’s Act 2015, unless he chooses to resign his seat by use of a strange mechanism of being appointed Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds or Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. (House of Commons Library. If he does not resign, judging from prior recall petitions, there is a very good chance that he will be recalled and if he stands again will not be re-elected in the by-election. Previous history of the results of by-elections after recalls suggest that a replacement candidate of the same political party, in this case the Labour party, may struggle to be elected.
