Today’s MPs are subject to greater scrutiny than any in the past, with easy public access to all kinds of online statistics, including voting records. More transparency in politicians’ work is always a good thing, but it can lead to some misunderstandings.

For example, a number of people have asked me why politicians don’t vote in every single division. Sometimes, of course, this is due to absence from other parliamentary duties, such as committee work. But the single biggest reason is simply that, unlike almost any other parliament in the world, abstentions in the UK parliament are not recorded. Any time we abstain, it looks like we’re not there.

My own record for my first year says I voted 61.2% of the time. But in fact, I was in the chamber for almost all the others.

Why would I want to abstain so much? Because when you’re a member of the third largest party, as the Lib Dems are, most of the time we are voting on either a government motion or a Conservative amendment. We frequently don’t agree with either of them.

placeholder image — John Milne outside Parliament.

That can leave us with a difficult decision. For example, back in January, the Conservatives moved an amendment to Labour’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, asking for a new national enquiry into the grooming gang scandal.

However, the kind of amendment they chose to use – known as a ‘reasoned amendment’ - would have had the effect of killing the whole Bill, if passed. Yet the Bill contained many recommendations specifically designed to improve child protection. Ironically, some of them were made by an earlier enquiry but never enacted by the Conservative government. It would be outright bizarre to vote against making children safer through this Bill.

Voting either For or Against had its issues, so we decided to abstain. However, all the public sees is a blank contribution. However, it’s hard to see any other course of action we can take in the current system.

MPs can also be active in other ways, such as being a party spokesperson or a Member of a Select Committee. They can be very demanding, but they cover a lot of important work. I am on Work & Pensions, which meets every week for 3-6 hours. These sessions give me the opportunity to hear from key stakeholders in the industry and raise issues affecting Horsham. Crucially, they also allow me to question government ministers in depth, something that often isn't possible in the House of Commons Chamber.

This was the case recently when I had the opportunity to ask what is called an 'Oral Question' in the Chamber to Stephen Timms, the Minister for Social Security and Disability. His response was brief and offered little explanation. However, in the subsequent Work and Pensions Committee meeting, I was able to revisit the same question and press for answers directly through a series of follow-up questions, giving me a much more detailed response.

Overall, the Liberal Democrat MPs are among the most active in Parliament, filling all our seats on select committees compared to other parties. The least active MP I have come across is Rishi Sunak, who voted in just 7 divisions in the last year.