So last time, I talked about how lately I’ve been really intent on checking stuff off my running list for London. One of these was Parliament. Kind of like going to Washington DC and touring all the buildings there, I thought it would be really interesting to get inside of the building and actually see this centuries old building where the United Kingdom is run from. They do in fact offer tours, but only on Saturdays, and I want to say they were like 18 pounds per person. However, you can score free entry to Parliament by going to sit in on a meeting of either the House of Commons or the House of Lords. This, to me, is way cooler because 1. it’s free!! and 2. you actually get to watch and see important decisions being made and get a glimpse into their government in action. You have to be careful when you try to go that the houses aren’t on recess, but they had actually just come back the day before I went (last Tuesday) so I was all set.
I chose to go to the House of Commons rather than the House of Lords, the consensus on the internet being that the House of Commons was more exciting and where all the power is, while the House of Lords is a “retirement home for ex-politicians.” Haha not my words! The House of Commons session was starting at 11:30 that morning and I was advised to get there a little early so that you will have the best chance of getting in and you will get to watch the Speakers Procession.
I showed up to the Parliament building around 11:15 and went around the side of the building to the visitor’s entrance. There were some people standing there with tickets, but I basically just told the guard that I wanted to sit in on the House of Commons session and he radioed in to make sure there would be enough room for me, gave me a pass, and just sent me straight down to security! Easy peasy, and no long lines or anything! Beyond having to go through the airport style security I basically just walked right in! 
They gave me a visitor badge and basically just sent me on my way and I had no real idea of where I was going. It was kind of weird to be that I was basically unsupervised in their center of government but I guess I did go to security. I found my way through the doors on the far right of the picture above, right next to where those people are and entered this room.
All the plaques that you see on the floor are different places where important people have stood and given big addresses. There’s one for Winston Churchill, a couple for George VI, and several for the current Queen Elizabeth. I love that I can literally walk in their footsteps like that! I walked up the staircase at the far side of the room and turned left into this corridor.
At the end of this hall, we entered another large grand hall and from there I wasn’t allowed to take any more pictures. As you walked through the doorway, you were given a card that was to be your ticket into the viewing hall; you had to sign it to show you understood what behavior you were supposed to have. It was around 11:25 at this point and so all the people that had showed up to watch just sort of waited until 11:30 when they did the Speakers Procession. I wasn’t really sure what it was all about or who the people were so this is from the parliament website:
“the procession today consists of a Commons’ Doorkeeper, the Serjeant at Arms with the mace, the Speaker, the Trainbearer, Chaplain and Secretary. The procession moves circuitously from Speaker’s House through the Library Corridor, the Lower Waiting Hall, Central and Members’ Lobbies to the Chamber. Police along the route call out ‘Speaker’, to signify that any people present should stand aside for the Speaker’s procession. In Central Lobby, where there may be members of the public, the police inspector on duty shouts “Hats off, Strangers.”
So there ya go. After that, we all made our way up the stairs and into the viewing gallery. You’re not allowed to take any bags in with you, so I had to check my purse in the lobby, and I picked up a pamphlet detailing today’s parliamentary business (they were meeting from 11:30-7:00 this particular day!!). Typically sessions in the House of Commons begin with “Questions.” (On Wednesdays, apparently its devoted to questions for the Prime Minister! That would be cool to see but I’m sure it’s crazy busy!!) Little did I know that this day’s questions would be directed towards the Secretary of Health, Jeremy Hunt. Add my background to all that I’ve been learning about the NHS, the session was so relevant to me and so interesting! For this particular session, MP’s (Members of Parliament) were basically just asking the Health Secretary and Health Ministers questions about things concerning their constituents. The session was organized by what looked like some pre-approved questions to answer, but people could also ask other questions that weren’t listed on the bulletins throughout. Questions that came up concerned things like how there’s not enough GP’s and rural clinics/hospitals. Topics of lung disease, maternity care, NHS funding, and mental health all came up as well. Even though I didn’t know personally about each of the situations because I’m not from here, it was still interesting because I knew the context and could learn about what the situation is here. Plus, it was super entertaining. British Parliament is nothing like our Congress. Instead of sitting in a semi-circle, they actually sit opposed to each other, one party faces the other. And they get sassy. There were lots of times that voices were being raised and comments were made just to make someone else mad. When MP’s asked a question, sometimes you could tell they really wanted information, and other times (a lot of the time) you could tell that it was more of self-congratulatory thing and they were pointing out something that they knew the Department of Health wasn’t doing great at, and the Health people knew it too. But there wasn’t a lot of tension either. It was very laid back and while there were some witty comments that were made, a lot of the MP’s were actually making jokes; the Speaker was the worst one about this!! Lots of people yelling “Hear hear!!!” if they agreed with something or knew that someone was low key bashing a fault of the Health Department haha. MP’s were on their phones a lot of the time doing who knows what, and they weren’t even all there – sometimes they would get up and leave halfway through and other people would just kind of wander in! And yet, I still got the sense that they were accomplishing what they set out to accomplish and that it was still efficiently run. So so different from the way our own government operates in every aspect. While it was especially applicable for me because it was health directed, I think that I would have still enjoyed it on any day no matter the topic just because it is so unique.
I also really liked how each MP was asking questions that directly affected their own constituents. Seriously every single MP that got to ask a question (and they were from all over the UK so the accents were fun too 
) would use the words “my constituents” somewhere in their question. They just seemed like they really cared about their people and that they were actually knowledgeable about what was happening there and willing to fight for them to make things better. Maybe it was just the time I went because it was a time for specific questions and not trying to pass bills, but I don’t get the sense that members of American Congress are that devoted to their personal constituents; maybe it’s more party based? I don’t really know because I really just don’t know thaaat much about government anyway, but I did get the sense that these MP’s really cared. And that was really refreshing to witness.
) would use the words “my constituents” somewhere in their question. They just seemed like they really cared about their people and that they were actually knowledgeable about what was happening there and willing to fight for them to make things better. Maybe it was just the time I went because it was a time for specific questions and not trying to pass bills, but I don’t get the sense that members of American Congress are that devoted to their personal constituents; maybe it’s more party based? I don’t really know because I really just don’t know thaaat much about government anyway, but I did get the sense that these MP’s really cared. And that was really refreshing to witness.
I ended up staying until the end of the Health Questions session (lasted just over an hour) and went ahead and left when an MP was given 10 minutes to give a speech about why car parks at hospitals shouldn’t be allowed to charge people. Later on in the day, there was actually going to be a committee meeting for Brexit which would have been so cool to sit in on, but it wasn’t for like 4 more hours and I didn’t think I could stick it out for that long. If the House of Lords had been in session at this point (sometimes they’re in session at the same time) I could have just bopped across the hall to go sit in on their session, but they weren’t there. That’s the beauty of this whole session viewing; once you’re in, you’re kinda free to come and go and there’s no limit on how long you stay.
I was really glad that I got to have this experience just because I feel like its such a great way to learn more about the United Kingdom in a way that’s not museums or galleries. It’s a place of huge importance and I really like that they still have ways for people to interact with the government by offering these free viewings. It allows people to be more educated about what’s going on and see how their government runs! Super super important!!! So next time or if you’re ever in London, definitely take advantage of this because I really think between the free pricetag, the history of the place, and the current political importance, it should really have a place on the typical tourist itinerary!
Thanks for reading!
-Katie
Katie, a senior Biology major, is spending the Fall 2017 semester studying Health & Society at King's College in London through Arcadia University.
Read more from Katie at https://katientheuk.wordpress.com/
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