The Chief Whip of the Liberal Democrats is responsible for administering the
whipping system in the party which ensures that members attend and vote in
parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
when the
party leadership requires a majority vote. Whips, of which two are appointed in the party, a member of the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
and a member of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
, also help to organise their party’s contribution to parliamentary business. On some occasions, the party leadership may allow MP's to have a
free vote based on their own conscience rather than party policy, of which the chief whip is not required to direct votes.
This is a list of people who have served as
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes.
United Kingdom
...
of the
Liberal Democrats in the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...
and of its predecessor parties. The
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
was formed in 1859, but through its roots in the
Whig Party dates back to the late 1670s. In 1988, the Liberals merged with the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
, formed by dissident
Labour Party members in 1981, to create the Liberal Democrats.
House of Commons
Whigs
Liberal Party
*
1 Wallace continued as Liberal Democrat Chief Whip following the merger
Social Democratic Party
Liberal Democrats
House of Lords
Whigs
Liberal Party
*
1 Falkland was absent serving as
Governor of Nova Scotia
The following is a list of the governors and lieutenant governors of Nova Scotia. Though the present day office of the lieutenant governor in Nova Scotia came into being only upon the province's entry into Canadian Confederation in 1867, the po ...
*
2 Colebrooke continued as Liberal Chief Whip in the Lloyd George coalition of 1916 to 1922. Denman was Chief Whip of the Opposition Asquith Liberals from 1919 to 1924
*
3 Tordoff continued as Liberal Democrat Chief Whip following the merger
Social Democratic Party
Liberal Democrats
Chief Whips of the National Liberal Party (Coalition Liberals), 1916–1923
Chief Whips of the Liberal National Party (later National Liberal Party), 1931–1966
See also
*
Chief Whip of the Labour Party
The Chief Whip of the Labour Party oversees the whipping system in the party, which is responsible for ensuring that Labour MPs or members of the House of Lords attend and vote in parliament in the desired way of the party leadership. Chief W ...
*
Chief Whip of the Conservative Party
The Chief Whip of the Conservative Party oversees the whipping system in the party, which is responsible for ensuring that Conservative MPs or members of the House of Lords attend and vote in parliament in the desired way of the party leadership ...
References
Bibliography
*Chris Cook and Brendan Keith, ''British Historical Facts 1830–1900'', Macmillan, 1975
*David Butler and Gareth Butler, ''Twentieth-Century British Historical Facts 1900–2000'', Macmillan, 2000
{{UK Liberal Democrats
Liberal Party (UK)
Liberal Democrats (UK)
Social Democratic Party (UK)
Political whips
Organisation of the Liberal Democrats (UK)