Annual Report and Accounts 1998-99


APPENDIX B

Business of the House: Statistics


By calendar year
  

ASITTINGS
1998
1997*
1996
1995

1Number of sittings days (excluding days when the House sat for judicial business only and swearing in days)
163
125
149
145
  
2Number of weeks during which the House sat
39
31
37
37
  
3Number of Hours for which the House sat
1211:21
816:39
1029:18
917:16
  
4Average daily attendance
428
394
376
373
  
5Average length of sitting
7:26
6:32
6:54
6:20
  
6Number of divisions†
161
78
111
113
(i) Government victories
120
63
98
99
(ii) Government defeats
35
14
10
8
(iii) Other divisions
6
1
3
6

* General election year.
† A government victory is defined as one where at least one of the tellers on the winning side is a government whip. Divisions where the winning side includes a government whip and a whip from another party, those without a quorum and unwhipped divisions are counted as ``other divisions''.





BTHE TIME OF THE HOUSE was divided approximately as follows:

1998
1997
1996
1995

  
1Prayers
14:06
10:48
11:42
11:48
1.2%
1.3%
1.1%
1.3%
  
2Introduction of new peers
5:00
15:22
7:10
2:40
0.4%
1.9%
0.7%
0.3%
  
3Starred questions
71:51
55:49
68:38
66:57
5.9%
6.8%
6.7%
7.3%
  
4General debates
167:58
170:43
230:44
170:21
13.9%
20.9%
22.4%
18.6%
  
5Debates on European Communities Committee reports
18:08
18:57
20:27
19:25
1.5%
2.3%
2.0%
2.1%
  
6Debates on Science & Technology Committee reports
7:29
5:40
10:27
3:39
0.6%
0.7%
1.0%
0.4%
  
7Statements
53:13
32:25
30:57
19:54
4.4%
4.0%
3.0%
2.2%
  
8Measures
0:18
0:15
0
0:21
<0.1%
<0.1%
0%
<0.1%
  
9Public Bills (including hybrid bills)
715:04
372:36
527:24
496:11
59%
45.6%
51.2%
54.1%
  
10Private bills
1:11
4:59
0:22
3:52
0.1%
0.6%
50.1%
0.4%
  
11Statutory instruments
36:96
33:40
56:65
52:42
3.1%
4.1%
5.5%
5.7%
  
12Unstarred questions
99:31
75:43
38:14
39:27
8.2%
9.3%
3.7%
4.3%
  
13Other (including formal business and adjournments)
19:56
19:42
26:08
29:59
1.6%
2.4%
2.5%
3.3%




 
previous page contents next page

House of Lords 
home page Parliament home page House of Commons home page search 
page enquiries

© Parliamentary copyright 1999