Opposition day: Supporting high streets
106Ayes
321Noes
Defeated · majority 215 · Government won221 did not vote
648 Members · Aye 106 · No 321 · DNV 221 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament voted on 4 November 2025 to reject a Conservative opposition day motion calling on the government to support high streets. The motion was defeated by 321 votes to 106, with the government commanding a comfortable majority against it. The vote concerned the health of town centres and high streets, which have faced long-running pressure from the shift to online retail, business rates costs, and changing consumer habits. Opposition day motions of this kind do not change the law directly, but they serve as a formal statement of parliamentary opinion and a vehicle for the opposition to put the government on the record. A win for the Conservatives would have signalled parliamentary support for a different approach to high street policy; the defeat means the government's existing plans face no such formal challenge. The division split almost entirely along party lines. All 283 Labour and 31 Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted backed the No lobby, while 96 Conservatives voted Aye. The Democratic Unionist Party, Reform UK, Traditional Unionist Voice, and Ulster Unionist Party also voted Aye. The Green Party voted No alongside the government. Three independents voted Aye and three voted No. There were no notable cross-party rebellions.
Voting Aye meant
Support the motion backing measures to protect and revitalise high streets, likely criticising the government's record on business rates, retail, or related policies affecting town centres.
Voting No meant
Reject the opposition's motion, arguing the government's existing plans adequately support high streets or that the motion is politically motivated and unhelpful.
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped No
0
283
78
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
96
0
20
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
71
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped No
0
31
11
Independent
—
3
3
7
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
—
2
0
6
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
4
0
1
Green Party of England and Wales
Whipped No
0
3
1
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
1
1
Your Party
—
0
0
2
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
1
0
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
1
0
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Calls for abolishing business rates entirely for 250,000 high-street premises, scrapping Employment Rights Bill, cutting energy bills by 20%, and removing red tape to support struggling businesses harmed by Labour's £25bn tax raid and national insurance rise.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,209 words) →
Defends government's Pride in Place programme (£5bn across 339 locations), April 2026 business rates relief for eligible premises below £500k rateable value, and Employment Rights Bill as bringing worker protections necessary for economic growth.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (2,860 words) →
Acknowledges inherited economic damage from Conservatives but criticises Labour's national insurance rise and Employment Rights Bill uncertainty; calls for business rates reform, industrial strategy acceleration, customs union with EU, and energy bill cuts.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (2,846 words) →
Frames Conservative motion as gaslighting deregulation; emphasises Labour's neighbourhood policing guarantee (13,000 officers), safer streets initiative, and Employment Rights Bill as protecting workers and rewarding decent employers.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (1,004 words) →
Warns that taxation and regulation squeeze businesses; cites 300% business rate increases in his constituency and argues government policies harm young people and new entrants to labour market.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,602 words) →
Emphasises hospitality sector hardship from combined tax and national insurance impacts; argues Employment Rights Bill will damage young people's job prospects; questions unemployment figures.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,891 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0