3rd Report - Status of independent Members of Parliament

Key findings

• Six independent candidates were elected in 2024 (highest in modern history); five formed an 'Independent Alliance' 'technical group' seeking greater speaking rights and committee access comparable to small parties like the Greens and Reform UK.
• The concept of 'technical groups' is unknown in UK Standing Orders; extending conventions applicable to small registered parties to unregistered groups would require consideration of financial regulation, transparency obligations, and Electoral Commission registration differences.
• Independent MPs can broadly exercise the same parliamentary rights as party members (speaking time, questions, amendments, bills) but evidence from elected independents suggests they lack party machinery support and require additional training on parliamentary processes and digital tools.
• Smaller parties' procedural rights (e.g., PMQs participation, select committee seats) derive from convention rather than Standing Order and apply only to registered parties with legal and financial accountability; technical groups have no legal status or equivalent obligations.
• Extending procedural rights to technical groups would 'fragment' time currently allocated to smaller parties; parties themselves expressed concern that privileges based on 'lack of unified purpose' would be counterproductive to the House's interest in representing the full range of public views.

Recommendations

• Review induction and training offer for new Members elected as independents prior to the next General Election, ensuring sessions and resources meet their particular needs and address challenges such as understanding legislation processes and digital tools (MemberHub).
• Trial changes to the parliamentary website to add clear information describing the use of 'independent' category and make party affiliation history of each Member more prominent and easier to view, to reduce confusion between independently elected MPs and those who have lost party whip.
• No formal recognition should be afforded to 'technical groups' at this time; the House should be given opportunity to express its view on formalising the rights of smaller parties before considering technical groups, and may wish to consider what should happen if a large number of independent MPs express a desire to collaborate as a technical group upon election.

Key actors

Cat Smith, Shockat Adam MP, Iqbal Mohamed MP, Ian Byrne MP, John McDonnell MP, Wendy Chamberlain MP, Hansard Society, Electoral Commission