House of Commons

Wip The House of Commons
Type:	Lower house of the Imperial Parliament
Speaker:	Willow Lyon, Ärle eui Veres since 5 November 2023 (311 AS)
Prime Minister	Visärle Marchwood, Caps Party since 311 AS.
Voting system:	First-past-the-post
Last election:	November 2023 (311 AS)

The House of Commons (HoC) is the lower house of the Imperial Parliament. Like the upper house, the Assembly of Peers, it meets in Sarholm, New Sarovia. The House of Commons is an elected body made up of 19 members known as MPs (Members of Parliament). MPs are elected to represent constituencies on a first-past-the-post basis and retain their seats until the dissolution of Parliament.

The House of Commons of the New Sarovian Empire began to evolve in 2021, where Imperial Consent was granted to the Charter of the Imperial Parliament, 2020,thus, forming the system of government as we know it today. In accordance with the Constitution and the Charter of the Imperial Parliament, 2020, the Lords' power to reject legislation was reduced to a delaying power. The government is solely responsible to the House of Commons and the Prime Minister remains in office only as long as he maintains the confidence of the majority of the commons.

Role

Relationship with the HIM Government

Although the House of Commons does not formally elect the Prime Minister, by convention and in practice the Prime Minister is accountable to the House and must therefore maintain its support. Therefore, the position of the parties in the Chamber is of paramount importance (these being the Caps Party and Hats Party).

Whenever the position of Prime Minister becomes vacant, the monarch appoints the person who has the support of the House, or who is most likely to command the support of the House – normally the leader of the largest party in the House – while the leader of the second largest party becomes the leader of the opposition.

The House of Commons can indicate its lack of support for the government by rejecting a motion of confidence or passing a motion of no confidence. Motions of confidence and non-confidence are stated explicitly: for example, "That this House has no confidence in His Imperial Majesty's Government." Many other motions were, until recent decades, considered confidence issues, although not explicitly formulated as such: in particular, important bills that were part of the government's agenda. The annual Budget is still considered a matter of trust. When a government loses the confidence of the House of Commons, the Prime Minister is forced to resign, making way for another MP who can inspire confidence, or to ask the monarch to dissolve Parliament, thus precipitating a general election.

A Prime Minister will resign following the party's election defeat if they are unable to form a coalition or obtain a confidence and supply agreement, and may resign following a motion of no confidence in the Prime Minister or for personal reasons. In these cases, the position of Prime Minister goes to whoever manages to command a majority in the House, unless there is a tied parliament and a coalition is formed; the new Prime Minister will, by convention, be the new leader of the resigning party. It became practice to draft the constitutions of New Sarovia's major political parties to provide a defined way of appointing a new party leader.

Peers as ministers

By convention, ministers are members of the House of Commons or the Assembly of Peers. Some were appointed outside Parliament, but in most cases they entered Parliament in a by-election or by receiving a peerage (being appointed peers).

Few important cabinet posts (except Lord Privy Seal, Lord Chancellor, and Lord-Speaker of the Assembly of Peers) have been filled by a peer in recent times. Responsible government is an international constitutional paradigm. The Prime Minister chooses the ministers and can decide to dismiss them at any time, although appointments and dismissals are formally made by the Sovereign.

Scrutiny of the government

The House of Commons formally scrutinizes the Government through its Committees and Prime Minister's Questions, when members ask questions of the Prime Minister; the House offers other opportunities to question other ministers. Prime Minister's Questions take place weekly, normally for half an hour. Questions must relate to the responding minister's official government activities, and not to his activities as a party leader or as a private member of Parliament. Usually, members of the Government party/coalition and members of the Opposition alternate answering questions. Members can also ask questions in writing.

In practice, this scrutiny can be quite weak. Because the first-past-the-post electoral system is used, the governing party often enjoys a large majority in the House of Commons, and ministers and departments practice defensive government, outsourcing essential work to others. If the government has a large majority, it will have no need or incentive to compromise with other parties.

Legislative functions

Bills can be introduced in either house, although important bills usually originate in the House of Commons. The Lords cannot delay a money bill (a bill which, in the opinion of the Speaker of the House of Commons, concerns only national taxes or public funds) for more than one month. Furthermore, the Lords cannot delay most other public bills for more than two parliamentary sessions or one calendar year. These provisions, however, only apply to public bills originating in the House of Commons. Furthermore, a bill seeking to extend the parliamentary term beyond five years requires the consent of the Assembly of Peers.

By a custom which prevailed even before the Acts of Parliament, only the House of Commons can originate bills relating to taxation or supply. Furthermore, supply laws passed by the House of Commons are immune to change by the Assembly of Peers. Furthermore, the Assembly of Peers is prevented from amending a bill to insert a tax or supply-related provision, but the House of Commons often waives its privileges and allows the Lords to make changes with financial implications.