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Open Ban MPs who have resigned from standing in resulting by-election for same party

Created by Lucy Connelly
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If an MP resigns and triggers a by-election, they should not be eligible to compete in that by-election unless they are standing for a different party. By-elections cost the public purse and other parties money. An MP in a safe seat can resign just to make a political point and be re-elected.

This is about preventing the abuse of the parliamentary system. An MP who has been elected has a duty to their constituents. If they genuinely need to resign, or they feel that they must change party and therefore want to give voters a chance to choose again, then that is fair enough. But they should not resign if they are intending to stand again for the same party.

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    If this petition gets 10,000 signatures, government will respond to it.

    If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

    This petition will stay open until 4 February 2027.