Nigel Farage has announced he will resign as an MP and stand again in a by-election in the Essex constituency of Clacton-on-Sea, which he has represented since July 2024. The process he must follow is determined by rules established 400 years ago, rooted in a resolution approved by the House of Commons on March 2, 1623.
Why MPs Cannot Simply Resign
Under parliamentary law, an MP is elected to serve for a whole Parliament and cannot in principle resign their seat. This rule was established at a time of political turbulence and growing friction between Parliament and the Crown, according to the Hansard Society. MPs who fell foul of the monarchy could be executed, and some chose to resign to avoid confrontation with the king. However, Parliament feared that allowing easy resignations would expose MPs to royal pressure and undermine the independence of the Commons.
Later, in December 1680, Parliament moved to further bolster its independence by ruling that an MP who accepted a paid job, originally described as an “office of profit,” from the Crown would automatically lose their seat.
The Mechanism for Resignation
To resign, an MP must write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer requesting appointment to one of two ceremonial offices of profit: the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the three Chiltern Hundreds of Stoke, Desborough and Burnham, or the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead. These appointments are entirely ceremonial and involve no payments. The Chancellor, currently Rachel Reeves, can refuse the request in theory, but such requests are accepted as a matter of convention.
On approval, a letter is sent to the MP confirming their appointment, and the MP’s former seat becomes vacant. The disqualification is recorded in the votes and proceedings of the Commons but not in Hansard, as there is no formal statement or debate.
History of the Chiltern Hundreds
The Chiltern Hundreds, broadly aligning with Buckinghamshire, were first used for resignation in 1751, when John Pitt vacated his seat of Wareham to stand for election in Dorchester. The Manor of Northstead, a poorer estate near Scalby, North Yorkshire, was first used in 1844. According to the Hansard Society, historians describe the manor’s main property in 1600 as little more than “an old chamber… a low house under it, unfit for habitation.”
When Will the By-election Be Confirmed?
A writ confirming a by-election requires a Commons motion instructing the Speaker to issue a warrant to the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, who then confirms the election to the returning officer. The motion is conventionally moved by the chief whip of the outgoing MP’s party, allowing them to set the timing. The Hansard Society notes that convention could be ignored, but in the current situation, timing may be constrained by the limited sitting days before the summer recess on July 17.
