| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to disqualification for membership of the House of Commons. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 1975 c. 24 |
| Territorial extent | [b] |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 8 May 1975 |
| Commencement | 8 May 1975[c] |
Status: Amended | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, fromlegislation.gov.uk. | |
| House of Commons Disqualification Act 1957[d] | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to make provision for disqualifying the holders of specified offices for membership of the House of Commons, and to repeal the enactments providing for the disqualification of the holders of offices or places of profit under the Crown and other offices, of persons having pensions from the Crown and of persons contracting with the Crown for or on account of the public service, and certain enactments disqualifying members of that House for holding other offices; to make corresponding provision in respect of the Senate and House of Commons of Northern Ireland; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid. |
| Citation | 5 & 6 Eliz. 2. c. 20 |
| Territorial extent |
|
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 17 April 1957 |
| Commencement | 17 April 1957[c] |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | Succession to the Crown Act 1707,House of Commons (Disqualifications) Act 1801 |
| Repeals/revokes | |
| Repealed by | Ministers of the Crown Act 1975 |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| House of Commons (Disqualifications) Act 1801 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for declaring what Persons shall be disabled from sitting and voting in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; and also for carrying into effect Part of the Fourth Article of the Union of Great Britain and Ireland, by providing in what cases Persons holding Offices or Places of Profit under the Crown of Ireland shall be incapable of being Members of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the said United Kingdom. |
| Citation | 41 Geo. 3. (U.K.) c. 52 |
| Territorial extent |
|
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 20 June 1801 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by |
|
Status: Amended | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the House of Commons (Disqualifications) Act 1801 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, fromlegislation.gov.uk. | |
TheHouse of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 (c. 24) is anact of theParliament of the United Kingdom that prohibits certain categories of people from becomingmembers of theHouse of Commons. It is an updated version of similar older acts, known collectively by the stockshort titleHouse of Commons Disqualification Act.
The groups disqualified from membership of the House of Commons for all constituencies are:
Lords-lieutenant andhigh sheriffs are also disqualified from seats for constituencies within their area.
Section 4 of the act effectively adds the Crown Stewards and Bailiffs of the Chiltern Hundreds and of the Manor of Northstead to part III to schedule 1, thus naming them as offices whose holders are disqualified. These offices aresinecures, used in modern times to effectresignation from the House of Commons. Prior to 1926, this disqualification was due to them being "offices of profit under the Crown", but that disqualification was abolished in 1926 and by s. 1(4) of this act.
The election to the Commons of a disqualified person is invalid, and the seat of an MP who becomes disqualified is vacated immediately (triggering aby-election).
ThePrivy Council has jurisdiction to determine whether a purported MP is disqualified; the issue may be tried in theHigh Court,Court of Session orHigh Court of Northern Ireland as appropriate for the constituency.
Section 2 of the act limits the number of government officials (specifically, holders of offices listed in schedule 2) in the House of Commons at any one time to 95. AnyMP appointed above that limit are forbidden to vote until the number is reduced to 95.
The effect of this part of the act is that the maximum number of MPs who can be appointed to ministerial posts is 95 (whether paid or unpaid). There is no equivalent limit on the number of members of theHouse of Lords who can be appointed to ministerial posts.[1]
The act was amended by subsequent legislation: