'To bob or not to bob?' Rugby MP John Slinger's final column of 2024

The unusual art of ‘bobbing’ and what is known as ‘the shuffle’ all play a part in how and when MPs speak in the House of Commons.

Many of you reading this may be scratching your heads and pondering why an MP is talking about ‘bobbing’.

Unlike school children who have often have to put their hand up to speak in class, Members of Parliament (MPs) have to stand up, or ‘bob’, if they want to say something in the House of Commons.

By doing so, they are trying to get the Speaker of the House of Commons’ attention. If they do, he may then allow them to speak.

If it’s a popular debate, I must continuously stand up and down at the end of another MP’s contribution. By doing this I am hoping to catch the speaker’s eye who, along with his assistants, decides whether I get to speak.

This ‘bobbing’ can be quite tiring, especially if it’s a long debate and a lot of MPs want to speak.

You could be ‘bobbing’ for many hours!

But the process of speaking in the chamber starts way before I stand up and open my mouth.

If I want to speak in a debate, I should let the Speaker know beforehand, either by email or by letting his assistants know.

But luck also plays a large part in whether I can ask a question to a government minister (known as ‘oral questions’) or to the Prime Minister at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) on a Wednesday.

So many MPs want to do this. They therefore have to prepare a general question in advance. This is then entered into a random computerised draw known as ‘the shuffle’.

Prime minister’s questions

At PMQs, the chances of being selected are slim. I have been fortunate enough to be chosen once.

On this occasion, I had to follow up my general question with something more specific.

I asked the Prime Minister about the importance of the creative arts subjects in schools, something he agreed with me on.

Occasionally during debates there are time limits imposed on speeches due to the sheer number of MPs who wish to speak.

This adds extra pressure to get your point across quickly, and it literally means you have to completely revise what you will say, on the spot, with lots of scribbling out of your prepared speech.

It’s quite daunting.

However, I’ve learnt that speaking in the House of Commons is like speaking anywhere.

If I think clearly about what I want to say in advance, keep to my key points, and don’t get distracted, others will listen.

For my oral questions, I’m increasingly trying to ask them without notes.

This is harder than it sounds, because you often have important facts to get across and as soon as your name is called, several cameras literally swoop around to video you.

My honourable friend…

When speaking, I also have to remember parliamentary practices and traditions.

I must always address the Speaker when I’m debating with Opposition MPs. This is to maintain civility and to stop others from just butting in. MPs are not allowed to refer to fellow MPs in the second person.

You are supposed to refer to other MPs as ‘my Honourable/Right Honourable Friend’, if they are Labour MPs, ‘the Honourable Member for (insert their constituency name if you can remember it!) if they’re from the Opposition and ‘my Right Honourable Friend’ if they are government ministers, because the ‘Right’ Honourable refers to their membership of another ancient body called the Privy Council, which only Cabinet ministers and occasionally some other MPs join.

It’s a quaint and old-fashioned tradition, but it distils a sense of mutual respect among all MPs and stops arguments from getting too heated and too personal.

It’s taken me a while to get used to speaking in Parliament.

There’s so much more to it than just saying what you want. And you can’t predict when you going to speak.

I might submit 15 oral questions and hear nothing for months, only to have five come up in a single week.

Sometimes, I’m scheduled to ask a question, but time runs out, leaving me ‘bobbing’ up and down without success.

Time in the chamber of the House of Commons is time that I can’t be working on other things, as it’s quite rightly regarded as rude to be typing out emails while a debate is going on.

The House of Commons’ traditions can seem strange and sometimes frustrating, but it makes it a special and unique place. Some may think it’s old fashioned, but these practices help ensure that every MP gets a fair chance to speak.

And that can only be a good thing.

Embracing old customs

On the whole, I’m happy to embrace some of the old customs. I have a few ideas on how to improve the process, which, like other colleagues, I’ll be feeding in to the reviews that are going on.

But I don’t mind ‘bobbing’ in the chamber of the House of Commons, if it means that I get the chance to speak up for Rugby in House of Commons chamber.

Indeed you could argue it’s good for my fitness!

I enjoy speaking in Parliament about issues that matter to my constituents. It’s the ultimate forum for both deciding on laws, and debating the most important issues that our country, and therefore our constituency, faces.

This couldn’t be better exemplified by the debate about the Assisted Dying Bill last week. I was hoping to speak but like dozens of other MPs, there wasn’t time for us all to speak (my planned words are on my social media channel).

Speaking in Parliament can be rewarding, especially if you judge the mood of the chamber right.

But it is always somewhat unnerving. When you rise to speak, your colleagues are listening, a minister is listening, the cameras are rolling and the words you say are recorded for time immemorial in Hansard (the Official Report).

Words matter and have consequence. I’m working at getting better at using them to the maximum effect to help our constituency and ultimately, play a small role in helping raise important national issues too.