Ketaki Zodgekar
Research Assistant
All work
Labour Party leadership contests
If the Labour Party leader resigns, then a contest for a new leader is automatically triggered.
How big is the Labour government’s majority?
There are 650 seats in parliament. At the general election, the government won 411 of them.
Direct ministerial appointments to the House of Lords
If the prime minister wants to appoint a minister who is not a sitting MP or serving peer, they must ennoble them.
Payroll vote
The 'payroll vote' is the body of MPs who hold offices that require them to support the government.
Collective responsibility
Collective responsibility is the convention whereby individual members of the government are accountable for the actions and decisions of government.
Party conferences
Every autumn, UK political parties hold their annual conferences – gatherings of politicians, party members and affiliated groups.
Special advisers
Special advisers (spads) are political appointees hired to support ministers.
Conservative Party leadership contests
The last Conservative Party leadership contest was between July and November 2024, when Kemi Badenoch became new leader of the Conservative Party.
What happens if a prime minister loses their seat in a general election?
At every general election there is a possibility that a party's leader would not be returned to parliament.
Special advisers and the Johnson government
How Boris Johnson's changes to the role of special advisers disempowered ministers and undermined the quality of decision making in government.