Fines

11.27The House of Lords in its capacity as a court of record has had power to inflict fines, either in substitution for, or in addition to, committal.1

The status of the House of Commons as a court of record has been doubted, and the Commons has not imposed a fine since 1666.2 Select committees in 1967 and 1977 and the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege in 1999 have recommended legislation to give the Commons a statutory power to fine.3 The 2013 Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege implied that, in its view, the Commons retained a power to fine, and noted that the New Zealand Parliament had recently exercised such a power, on the basis of its understanding of the powers of the UK House of Commons. The Joint Committee considered the disadvantages of legislating to confirm Parliament's penal powers outweighed the advantages and recommended further work in each House to set out clearly the powers they reserved the right to exercise.4

Footnotes

  1. 1. LJ (1620–28) 276; ibid (1660–66) 554; ibid (1666–75) 174; ibid (1685–91) 144; ibid (1760–64) 493 (Report of Precedents); ibid (1767–70) 575; ibid (1796–98) 509; ibid (1798–1800) 181; ibid (1801–02) 60, 105. Cases are recorded in which the Lords ordered security to be given for good conduct (ibid (1660–66) 554; ibid (1790–93) 331).
  2. 2. CJ (1660–67) 690; cf ibid (1547–1628) 609, and 1 Parl Hist 1250. In Jones v Randall (1774) 98 ER 708 at 944, Lord Mansfield remarked (obiter ) that the Commons were not a court of record, and in R v Pitt (1762) 97 ER 861, he said (again obiter ) that the Commons did not have power to fine. The Fines Act 1833 (c 99), ss 23–25, implicitly confirmed the understanding that the House of Lords imposes fines and the House of Commons does not, by requiring from the Clerk of the Parliaments a sessional return of fines and recognisances, and from the Clerk of the House of Commons a return of recognisances only. In Burdett v Abbot (1811) 104 ER 554, however, the court held that the House of Commons, whether or not it was a court, ought to have the power to protect itself from obstruction and insult, and to maintain its dignity and character. It is also notable that while the Commons did not impose fines, it had power to release prisoners on payment of fees.
  3. 3. HC 34 (1966–67) para 197; HC 417 (1976–77) para 15; HL 43-I, HC 214-I (1998–99) paras 279, 303.
  4. 4. Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege, First Report of Session 2013–14, Parliamentary Privilege, HL 30, HC 100, paras 56, 77, 100.