An Act to disqualify certain persons for election to the House of Commons; to make changes in the timetable for parliamentary elections; and for connected purposes.
Citation
1981 c. 34
Territorial extent
United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent
2 July 1981
Status: Current legislation
Text of the Representation of the People Act 1981 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.
The Representation of the People Act 1981 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates the provision for the automatic disqualification of an MP if they are imprisoned for over a year, leading to a by-election being held in their constituency.
The text of the Act states that it provides:
for the disqualification from membership of the House of Commons of any person who is detained anywhere in the British Islands or the Republic of Ireland (or who is unlawfully at large at any time when he would otherwise be detained) for more than a year for any offence,
that the election or nomination of such persons shall be void, and
that the seat of a Member who becomes so disqualified shall be vacated.
Following the passage of the Recall of MPs Act 2015, sitting MPs imprisoned on shorter sentences can be removed from their seats via recall petitions.
and 24 Related for: Representation of the People Act 1981 information
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct1981 (c. 34) is an Actofthe Parliament ofthe United Kingdom. It creates the provision for the automatic disqualification...
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct 1983 (c. 2) is an Actofthe Parliament ofthe United Kingdom. It changed the British electoral process in the following...
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct 1918 (7 & 8 Geo. 5. c. 64) was an actof Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in Great Britain and Ireland...
there were no mechanisms to recall Members of Parliament (MPs) in the UK. TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct1981 disqualifies any person serving a jail...
sentence of one year or more is ineligible, per RepresentationofthePeopleAct1981. Finally, members ofthe Senedd (Welsh Parliament) and Northern Ireland...
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct 1985 is an Actofthe Parliament ofthe United Kingdom concerning British electoral law. TheAct allows British citizens...
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c. 102), known as the Reform Act 1867 or the Second Reform Act, is an actofthe British Parliament...
seats. The British government passed theRepresentationofthePeopleAct1981 to prevent another prisoner contesting the second by-election in Fermanagh and...
or out of existence or fallen out of government control. TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct1981 provides for the automatic disqualification of parliamentary...
TheRepresentationofthePeopleAct 1990 (RPA 1990) added a minor amendment to previous Acts. Theact allowed a person no longer resident at their qualifying...
acts in the 20th century are better known. The title RepresentationofthePeopleAct was adopted in other countries of, or formerly part of, the British...
years the equal right to vote in theRepresentationofthePeople (Equal Franchise) Act 1928. After World War II, the UK became a founding member ofthe Council...
March 1981 led by a by-election won by Bobby Sands, an IRA prisoner who died later that year as a result of a hunger strike. TheRepresentationofthe People...
Global Information