What are Members of Parliament (MPs)?

There is no set job description for becoming an MP, but the Speaker’s Conference on Parliamentary Representation  offer the following job description: An MP has a number of responsibilities. The main ones are:

• as a legislator, debating, making and reviewing laws and government policy within Parliament; and
• as an advocate for the constituency he or she represents.
  • The MP can speak for the interests and concerns of constituents in Parliamentary debates and, if appropriate, intercede with Ministers on their behalf.
  • The MP can speak either on behalf of the constituency as a whole, or to help individual constituents who are in difficulty (an MP represents all their constituents, whether or not the individual voted for them).
  • Within the constituency an MP and his or her staff will seek to support individual constituents by getting information for them or working to resolve a problem.

In addition some MPs will:

• Take on an additional role as a Government Minister;
• Take on a formal role within Parliament, supporting the Speaker by chairing committees or debates;
• Have a formal role to play within their political party, for example, being a spokesperson, co-ordinating a campaign or advising the party leadership on a particular area of policy.

A good MP will make a positive difference to the community he or she represents. An MP can express the concerns of their community to Parliament and ensure people’s experiences are recorded and understood. He or she can press for changes which will increase the community’s wellbeing and prosperity. An MP has the authority to bring different people and agencies together to address an awkward problem. When someone has to take on ‘the system’—perhaps to secure the right care package for a relative, or to correct a miscarriage of justice—an MP can often support them and help them through. An MP will bring their knowledge and understanding of their constituents’ lives, concerns and interests, as well as their own life experience, to bear on their work. It is important to recognise that a Member’s responsibilities rest jointly and concurrently at Westminster and in the constituency. It is a modern requirement of the job that a Member has an office in both places and there is a strong public expectation that when not required at Westminster, Members will actively participate in the life of the constituency, including at weekends. Hence it is important to recognise that both Westminster and their constituency are places of work for MPs.