Summary
Historically, it has been seen as the right of every commoner to prepare and present petitions to the House of Commons in case of grievance and for the House to receive and respond to them.
This report, 'e-Petitions' (HC 136), follows on from a May 2007 Procedure Committee Report, in which support was expressed in principle for an e-petitioning system for the House of Commons.
The suggested scheme would retain the direct involvement of constituency Members of Parliament in the petition procedure.
The system proposed by the Committee would operate as follows:
- e-Petitions are submitted via the Parliamentary website. If they comply with the House's rules, the petitioner's constituency MP will be asked to act as facilitator.
- The e-Petition is then posted on the website for a set period, allowing others to add their name if they wish.
- At the end of the set period, it is closed and presented to the House.
- Petitioners and signatories may opt in to receive updates.
- e-Petitions will be printed in Hansard and sent to select committees and may be considered by them.
- The Government will normally be expected to reply within two months.
- On three occasions each year, certain e-Petitions will be debated by the House of Commons in Westminster Hall.
The Committee acknowledges that setting up an e-Petitions scheme is not without risks. Its successful implementation will require new ways of working and novel forms of governance.
However, e-Petitioning is also seen as having the potential to open up proceedings and make a major contribution to the House's strategic objective to 'make itself more accessible, to make it easier for people to understand the work of Parliament and do more to communicate its activity to the general public'.
In July 2007, the Government set out proposals for constitutional reform: see more on the Governance of Britain series.
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