Procedure Committee publishes report on proxy voting extension

Article summary

The House of Commons Procedure Committee has published its first report of session 2022—2023, ‘Proxy voting and the presence of babies in the Chamber and Westminster Hall’. The Committee has noted that there was an overwhelming balance of evidence in favour of extending proxy voting to include serious long-term illness and recommended that the government schedule a debate on the extension before the House of Commons rises for the summer. The Committee has also considered the topic of babies in the Chamber and concluded that members should not bring babies with them into the Chamber, Westminster Hall or general committees, but Chairs should retain de facto discretion that should be exercised sparingly.