The Petitions Committee is a parliamentary committee of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. Its role is to oversee petitions submitted to Parliament, including both electronically through the UK Parliament petitions website, and traditional paper petitions. The committee is one of the youngest in the Commons, formed in 2015, and is made up of 11 backbench Members of Parliament.
The process for e-petitions differs from the process for paper petitions, which can only be presented to the House of Commons by an MP.[1]
E-petitions can be submitted by British citizens and UK residents to the UK Government and Parliament via the UK Parliament petitions website. Petitions must be about something which Government or Parliament is responsible for, and must ask for a specific action from Parliament or Government.
An e-petition must be signed by the petition creator and five supporters before it will be sent for moderation. Moderation ensures that draft petitions meet the website's standards for publication. Petitions which do not meet the website's standards are rejected. Petitions published on the website are available for members of the public to sign. Petitions remain open for signatures for six months. At the end of six months, petitions are closed and formally reported by the Petitions Committee to Parliament.
All petitions which are published are reviewed by the Petitions Committee. Petitions which reach 10,000 signatures receive a written response from the UK Government. The committee can schedule debates in the House of Commons' second debating chamber (Westminster Hall), on Monday evenings at 4.30 pm.[2]
When Parliament is dissolved, all open petitions on petition.parliament.uk are closed, and new petitions are not accepted. After a new Petitions Committee is set up by the House of Commons, closed petitions are not reopened.
Petitions which reach 100,000 signatures are considered by the committee for debate. Petitions may not be put forward for debate if the issue has been debated recently, or is already scheduled for debate in the near future. Most petitions which reach the threshold are debated.
The Petitions Committee may also take other action on published petitions. On 1 March 2016 the Committee published its first report, Funding for research into brain tumours, in response to a petition which had gained over 120,000 signatures.[3]
The Petitions Committee has also taken oral evidence jointly with the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee on grouse shooting,[4] with the Health Select Committee on the meningitis B vaccine,[5] and with the Women and Equalities Committee on high heels and workplace dress codes[6] in response to petitions.
Membership of the committee is as follows:[7] [8]
| Date | Outgoing Member & Party | Constituency | → | New Member & Party | Constituency | Source | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| nowrap | 6 January 2025 | Kevin Bonavia MP (Labour) | Stevenage | → | Paul Davies MP (Labour) | Colne Valley | Hansard | ||
| nowrap | 3 March 2025 | David Baines MP (Labour) | St Helens North | → | Jacob Collier MP (Labour) | Burton and Uttoxeter | Hansard | ||
The chair was elected on 29 January 2020, with the members of the committee being announced on 2 March 2020.[9] [10]
| Member | Party | Constituency | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catherine McKinnell MP (Chair) | Labour | Newcastle upon Tyne North | ||
| Elliot Colburn MP | Conservative | Carshalton and Wallington | ||
| Martyn Day MP | SNP | Linlithgow and East Falkirk | ||
| Steve Double MP | Conservative | St Austell and Newquay | ||
| Chris Evans MP | Labour and Co-op | Islwyn | ||
| Katherine Fletcher MP | Conservative | South Ribble | ||
| Nick Fletcher MP | Conservative | Don Valley | ||
| Mike Hill MP | Labour | Hartlepool | ||
| Tom Hunt MP | Conservative | Ipswich | ||
| Kerry McCarthy MP | Labour | Bristol East | ||
| Theresa Villiers MP | Conservative | Chipping Barnet | ||
| Date | Petition title | Topic | Records of the debate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14/09/2015 | To debate a vote of no confidence in Health Secretary the Right Hon Jeremy Hunt (Contracts and conditions in the NHS) | |||
| 12/10/2015 | Make the production, sale and use of cannabis legal. | |||
| 19/10/2015 | Stop allowing immigrants into the UK | |||
| 26/10/2015 | Make an allowance for up to 2 weeks term time leave from school for holiday | |||
| 30/11/2015 | Introduce a tax on sugary drinks in the UK to improve our children's health | |||
| 07/12/2015 | Don't kill our bees! Immediately halt the use of Neonicotinoids on crops | Bees and toxic chemicals, Neonicotinoids | ||
| 11/01/2016 | Keep the NHS Bursary | |||
| 18/01/2016 | Block Donald J Trump from UK entry; Don't ban Trump from the United Kingdom | |||
| 25/01/2016 | Scrap plans forcing self-employed & small business to do 4 tax returns yearly | |||
| 01/02/2016 | Make fair transitional state pension arrangements for 1950s women | |||
| 07/03/2016 | Scrap the £35k threshold for non-EU citizens settling in the UK | |||
| 21/03/2016 | Jeremy Hunt to resume meaningful contract negotiations with the BMA | |||
| 18/04/2016 | Fund more research into brain tumours, the biggest cancer killer of under-40s | |||
| 25/04/2016 | Give the Meningitis B vaccine to ALL children, not just newborn babies | |||
| 09/05/2016 | Stop Cameron spending British taxpayers' money on Pro-EU Referendum leaflets | |||
| 06/06/2016 | Restrict the use of fireworks to reduce stress and fear in animals and pets | |||
| 13/06/2016 | Stop spending a fixed 0.7 per cent slice of our national wealth on Foreign Aid | |||
| 04/07/2016 | Include expressive arts subjects in the EBacc | |||
| 11/07/2016 | No more school penalty fines and bring back the 10 day authorised absence | |||
| 18/07/2016 | Stop retrospective changes to the student loans agreement | |||
| 5/09/2016 | EU Referendum Rules triggering a 2nd EU Referendum | |||
| 12/09/2016 | Urge the South Korean Government to end the brutal dog meat trade | |||
| 17/10/2016 | Invoke Article 50 of The Lisbon Treaty immediately | |||
| 24/10/2016 | Debate in the House the Local Government Pension Scheme Investment Regulations | |||
| 31/10/2016 | Ban driven grouse shooting | |||
| 21/11/2016 | Free childcare when both parents are working. Not just those who are on benefits | |||
| 12/12/2016 | Close all retail on boxing day, retail isn't needed on boxing day! | |||
| 12/12/2016 | Close all retail on boxing day, retail isn't needed on boxing day! | |||
| 23/01/2017 | Ban all non-recyclable/non-compostable packaging in the UK | |||
| 30/01/2017 | Demand an end to the pay restraint imposed on agenda for change NHS staff | National Health Service staff | ||
| 06/02/2017 | Shut down the domestic ivory market in the UK | |||
| 20/02/2017 | Prevent Donald Trump from making a State Visit to the United Kingdom; Donald Trump should make a State Visit to the United Kingdom | |||
| 27/02/2017 | Make it a specific criminal offence to attack any member of NHS Medical Staff | National Health Service staff | ||
| 06/03/2017 | Make it illegal for a company to require women to wear high heels at work | |||
| 13/03/2017 | April's Law | |||
| 20/03/2017 | Put a max of £1200 on car insurance for 18-25 year olds | |||
| 27/03/2017 | End the badger cull instead of expanding to new areas | |||
| 24/04/2017 | Authorise open book examinations for GCSE English Literature 2017 |
| Date | Petition title | Topic | Records of the debate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23/10/2017 | Make paying rent enough proof that you are able meet mortgage repayments | |||
| 30/10/2017 | To make votes matter, adopt Proportional Representation for UK General Elections | |||
| 6/11/2017 | Make mental health education compulsory in primary and secondary schools | |||
| 13/11/2017 | Agree to a second referendum on Scottish Independence | |||
| 20/11/2017 | Abolish the TV Licence | |||
| 27/11/2017 | Change the university fees from £9250 back to the £3000 fee for the UK | |||
| 4/12/2017 | Pay Up Now! – Scrap the pay cap and give public servants a meaningful pay rise | |||
| 11/12/2017 |
| |||
| 18/12/2017 | Put pressure on Libya to take action to stop enslavement of Black Africans | |||
| 15/1/2018 | Keep Childcare Vouchers open beyond April 2018 | |||
| 22/1/2018 | Leave the EU immediately | |||
| 29/1/2018 | Change the laws governing the use of fireworks to include a ban on public use | |||
| 26/2/2018 | End the export of live farm animals after Brexit | |||
| 5/3/2018 | Make British Sign Language part of the National Curriculum | |||
| 5/3/2018 | Insurance should be on the car itself instead of the individuals who drive it | |||
| 19/3/2018 | Make Orkambi available on the NHS for people with Cystic Fibrosis | |||
| 26/3/2018 | Change the GCSE English Literature exam from closed book to open book |
