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House of Representatives                                Ch 14                                                 p 516

Closure of question

After a question has been proposed from the Chair a Member may move ‘That the question be now put’ and the motion must be put immediately and resolved without amendment or debate. ¹ No notice is required of the motion and it may be moved irrespective of whether or not another Member is addressing the Chair. When the closure is moved, it applies only to the immediate question before the House.

The requirement for the closure motion to be put immediately and resolved without amendment or debate means that, until the question on this motion has been decided, there is no opportunity for a point of order to be raised or a dissent motion to be moved in respect of the putting of the motion. The closure thus takes precedence over other opportunities or rights allowed by the standing orders. ²

The provision for the closure of a question, commonly known as ‘the gag’, was incorporated in the standing orders in 1905 ³ but was not used until 7 September 1909. ⁴ Since then it has been utilised more frequently. ⁵ The closure has been moved as many as 41 times in one sitting ⁶ and 29 times on one bill. ⁷

If a motion for the closure is negatived, the Chair shall not receive the same proposal again if of the opinion that it is an abuse of the orders or forms of the House or moved for the purpose of obstructing business. ⁸ The closure of a question cannot be moved in respect of any proceedings for which time has been allotted under the guillotine procedure. ⁹ This restriction has been held not to apply to a motion, moved after the second reading of a bill, to refer the bill to a select committee when that proposal had not been included in the allotment of time for the various stages of the bill. ¹⁰ The closure cannot be moved on a motion in relation to which the Selection Committee has determined that debate should continue on a future day, ¹¹ as such matters cannot be brought to a vote without the suspension of standing orders. ¹² The Chair has declined to accept the closure on a motion of dissent from the Chair’s ruling. ¹³

If a division on the closure motion is in progress or just completed when the time for the automatic adjournment is reached, and the motion is agreed to, a decision is then taken on the main question(s) before the House before the automatic adjournment procedure is invoked. ¹⁴

When the closure is agreed to, the question is then put on the immediate question by the Chair. If the immediate question is an amendment to the original question, debate may then continue on the original question, or the original question as amended. ¹⁵ From time to time interruptions have occurred between the agreement to the closure and the putting of the question to which the closure related. ¹⁶

If the closure is moved and agreed to while a Member is moving or seconding (where necessary) an amendment—that is, before the question on the amendment is proposed from the Chair—the amendment is superseded, and the question on the original question is put immediately. ¹⁷ However, the Chair has declined to accept the closure at the point when a Member was formally seconding an amendment, and then proceeded to propose the question on the amendment. ¹⁸ Similarly, a motion to suspend standing orders moved during debate of another item of business is superseded by a closure moved before the question on the suspension motion is proposed from the Chair, as the closure applies to the question currently before the House. ¹⁹

Any Member may move the closure of a question in possession of the House, including a Member who has already spoken to the question. ²⁰ It may be moved by a Member during, or at the conclusion of, his or her speech, but no reasons may be given for so moving, ²¹ nor may a Member take advantage of the rules for personal explanations to give reasons. ²² If the seconder of a motion has reserved the right to speak, the closure overrides this right. ²³

Notice has been given of a motion to suspend the operation of the standing order for a period except when the motion was moved by a Minister. ²⁴

S.O. 81. During debate on the election of Speaker, the Deputy Speaker or the Second Deputy Speaker the closure may be moved only by a Minister, S.O. 11(h).

H.R. Deb. (15.3.2000) 14781-9; H.R. Deb. (3.4.2000) 15093.

The debate lasted over a week and amendments proposing to give the Chair a discretion not to accept the motion were defeated, VP 1905/167-78.

VP 1909/105.

See Appendix 20.

VP 1934-37/211-38.

VP 1923-24/25-48.

S.O. 78(g); e.g. H.R. Deb. (13.5.80) 2657.

S.O. 85(c).

VP 1934-37/483.

H.R. Deb. (9.3.98) 780-81.

VP 1996-98/495.

H.R. Deb. (16.11.78) 2893.

S.O. 31(c); H.R. Deb. (4.4.73) 1102-3.

E.g. VP 1956-57/42.

A Member has been named and suspended, VP 1954-55/123-4; a request has been made for leave to make a statement, VP 1932-34/114; the sitting has been suspended for a meal break and on resumption the Speaker has made a statement, VP 1951-53/609.

E.g. VP 1920-21/260; VP 1956-57/74; VP 1998-2001/1300; H.R. Deb. (21.8.2003) 19205-7.

H.R. Deb. (15.5.80) 2814.

H.R. Deb. (12.8.2004) 32954.

VP 1943-44/57; H.R. Deb. (17.2.44) 279,284; H.R. Deb. (31.3.2004) 27730.

H.R. Deb. (20.3.47) 926-8; H.R. Deb. (27.3.47) 1229.

H.R. Deb. (21.2.47) 123.

H.R. Deb. (26.7.46) 3203.

NP (7.12.2000) 8998; NP (19.6.2003) 3846.