The House of Commons (Removal of Clergy Disqualification) Act 2001 (c.13) is an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

. The purpose of the Act was to remove the disqualifications for

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

in standing for election as

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

and sitting in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

. The Act also allowed clergy to sit in other elected bodies including the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

. Some bishops of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

continue to be disqualified, as they sit in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

as Lords Spiritual. Previously clergy were disqualified to sit in the House of Commons due to the House of Commons (Clergy Disqualification) Act 1801 and section 10 of the

House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 The House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that prohibits certain categories of people from becoming members of the House of Commons. It is an updated version of similar older acts, known col ...

. The Bill was a reaction to the selection of David Cairns, a laicised Catholic priest, as the Labour candidate for the safe seat of Greenock and Inverclyde. Member of Parliament

Siobhain McDonagh Siobhain Ann McDonagh (born 20 February 1960) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mitcham and Morden since the 1997 general election. She served as an Assistant Whip in the Labour Government, ...

had previously introduced similar legislation in 1999, but it had run out of parliamentary time.

External links

*
Explanatory note to the Act
United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 2001 History of Christianity in the United Kingdom Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning the House of Commons Christianity and law in the 21st century Law about religion in the United Kingdom 2001 in Christianity Christianity and society in the United Kingdom {{UK-statute-stub

See also

External links