Petition · past parliament
Make MPs who switch parties have to stand down and trigger a by-election
Rejected
21 signatures
What the petition asks
It's becoming increasingly common for MPs to "cross the floor" & switch their party allegiance when they disagree with the policies of the party under which they were elected. Such MPs must be forced to stand-down and trigger a By-Election and give constituents the option of re-electing them
Since the General Election in 2017 73 MPs have changed party or become 'independent'. In the previous two Parliaments there were 18 and 6 respectively.
In only a small handful of cases did the MP concerned feel obliged to resign their seat and trigger a By-election so standing under their new party's policies and manifesto.
In only a small handful of cases did the MP concerned feel obliged to resign their seat and trigger a By-election so standing under their new party's policies and manifesto.
Why it was rejected
There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.
Timeline
| 15 Sep 2019 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 20 Sep 2019 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
21
Status
Rejected
Rejected
20 Sep 2019
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.