The ballot for Commons Private Members' Bills for the 2019-20 session took place on Thursday 9 January. Labour MP Mike Amesbury was drawn in first place.

Ballot results

The Clerk Assistant - Sarah Davies - drew 20 numbered ballot balls and the names of the successful MPs were read out by Parliament's new Chairman of Ways and Means (Deputy Speaker), Dame Eleanor Laing.

The Member drawn at position one has the first choice of a Private Members' Bill Friday to debate their Bill.

Position in the Ballot:

Presentation of Bills

The Ballot Bills will have their First Reading in the House of Commons on Wednesday 5 February 2020 and will then be debated over 13 sitting Fridays.

The dates of the sitting Fridays in the 2019-20 session have not been announced yet.

What is the Ballot for Private Members' Bills?

The ballot for Private Members' Bills gives MPs the chance to be one of the first 20 to introduce a Private Members' Bill on a subject of their choice this session. Those drawn higher in the ballot are more likely to get time to debate their Bill and therefore their Bills will have a higher chance of becoming law.

Speaker of the House of Commons, the Rt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP said:

“Success in the Private Members' Ballot empowers backbench MPs with a real opportunity to affect true legislative change or, at the very least, bring public awareness to an issue they feel passionate about. “I am looking forward to seeing which colleagues and causes will appear on the Order Paper on sitting Fridays, and I wish all of my colleagues the very best of luck and success in the ballot”.



Success of Private Members' Ballot Bills

In the 2017-19 session, the following nine Bills from the Private Members' Ballot became law:

What are Private Members' Bills?

Private Members' Bills are Public Bills introduced by MPs and Lords who are not government ministers. As with other Public Bills their purpose is to change the law as it applies to the general population. A minority of Private Members' Bills become law.

There are three ways in which a Member can table a Private Members' Bill but Ballot Bills have the best chance of becoming law, as they get priority for the limited amount of debating time available.

The names of Members applying for a Bill are drawn in a ballot held at the beginning of the parliamentary session. Normally, the first seven ballot Bills get a day's debate.

Follow @HouseofCommons on Twitter for updates on the UK House of Commons Chamber.

Image: PC

