Rejected petition: Make it law to call a by-election if an MP changes party or becomes independent
Rejected on
We ask the Government to introduce legislation requiring any MP who defects to another party, or leaves their party to sit as an independent, to automatically trigger a by-election. Voters should have the right to approve or reject their continued mandate.
When MPs change parties or become independents, they are no longer representing the manifesto or values they were elected on. This undermines trust in our democratic system. Constituents should have the right to re-evaluate their support through a by-election, ensuring proper accountability and representation. MPs work for the public — not party leaders or themselves. This goes for every party in Britain, no exceptions. The people must have a voice.
Why was this petition rejected?
There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.
You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.
You may wish to sign this petition which calls for a similar action: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/711480
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.