I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way, which is typically gracious of him. He calls it a “minimal check,” but the reality is that it is an absolute veto. If a Government do not have a majority in the House and if the Opposition sense that a Government might well win a majority if they went to the people, the Opposition are basically saying, “We are not going to allow the Government to get a mandate from the people.” That is precisely what would have happened in 2019 if Labour had not, for some reason, given way in the end.
Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Bill
Proceeding contribution from
Julian Lewis
(Conservative)
in the House of Commons on Monday, 14 March 2022.
It occurred during Debate on bills on Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Bill.
Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
710 c650 
Session
2021-22
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
Subjects
Librarians' tools
Timestamp
2022-03-15 21:52:21 +0000
URI
http://hansard.intranet.data.parliament.uk/Commons/2022-03-14/22031447000007
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