18 named examples with their significance, drawn from the Panther database. Read them, then test yourself.
In test mode, tap an example to reveal why it matters.
The examples
Dominic Cummings Select Committee Testimony (May 2021)(2021)(tap to reveal)- 7 hours of evidence to joint select committee; 9 million viewers; serious allegations about COVID decision-making
Greensill Capital and Cameron Lobbying Scandal (2021)(2021)(tap to reveal)- Former PM Cameron lobbied ministers for Greensill Capital; Foreign Affairs Committee investigated; Boardman Review found rules needed tightening
Rupert Murdoch and the Culture, Media and Sport Committee (July 2011)(2011)(tap to reveal)- Murdoch appeared before Culture Committee July 2011; global media coverage; led to Leveson Inquiry into press standards
The Windrush Scandal (2018)(2018)(tap to reveal)- Amber Rudd resigned 29 April 2018 for misleading Parliament (not directly causing policy). HASC cross-examination contributed to resignation. Guardian journalism preceded parliamentary scrutiny. Clearest modern IMR example.
Coronavirus Act 2020: Emergency Executive Dominance(2020)(tap to reveal)- Coronavirus Act 2020 enacted in 2 days; gave vast ministerial powers for 2 years; lockdown regulations by SI with minimal parliamentary debate
Partygate: PMQs Scrutiny and Johnson's Resignation (2021-22)(2022)(tap to reveal)- Keir Starmer used PMQs weekly to expose Partygate; no-confidence vote June 2022 (211-148); Johnson resigned July 2022
R (Miller) v The Prime Minister (2019) - "Miller II" / Cherry(2019)(tap to reveal)- In Miller II (2019), the Supreme Court unanimously ruled 11-0 that Prime Minister Johnson's prorogation (suspension) of Parliament for five weeks in September 2019 was unlawful. The government claimed it needed to prorogue Parliament to prepare a new legislative agenda, but the court held that the true purpose was to limit Parliamentary scrutiny of the Brexit process, making it a misuse of the prerogative power.
Retained EU Law Act 2023: Henry VIII Powers and Parliamentary Pushback(2023)(tap to reveal)- Original bill gave ministers power to revoke all EU-derived law by SI; scope narrowed after parliamentary opposition; Lords defeated government multiple times
Syria Commons Vote (August 2013): Government Defeated on Military Action(2013)(tap to reveal)- Commons voted 285-272 against military action in Syria; first defeat on military action since 1782
The Assisted Dying Bill (2024-26)(2024)(tap to reveal)- 330-275 second reading. First ever Commons vote to pass on assisted dying. 1000+ Lords amendments. Shows free votes allow parliamentary autonomy. Ongoing - update as bill progresses through Lords.
Welfare Reform Bill 2025: Backbench Rebellion and Lords Defeats(2025)(tap to reveal)- 150+ Labour MPs threatened rebellion; 13 Lords defeats; major government concessions on disability benefit cuts
128 Lords defeats in 2021-22 session (more than the 126 defeats under Wilson in 1975-76)(2021)(tap to reveal)- Use to show the Lords remains constitutionally significant as a check on the Commons. The record number of defeats under Johnson - a PM with an 80-seat majority - demonstrates that Lords scrutiny is more than symbolic. Analytically: the Lords' willingness to defeat a government with a large Commons majority supports the argument that it retains real legislative power. Contrast with the view that defeats are routinely overturned under the Parliament Acts.
Boris Johnson Privileges Committee Report (2023)(2023)(tap to reveal)- First PM found to have deliberately misled Parliament. 90-day suspension recommended. Johnson resigned whip before publication. Shows Parliament can censure but only retrospectively. Raises conventions question.
Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Defeat (January 2019)(2019)(tap to reveal)- May's deal defeated 432-202: largest government defeat in history. 118 Conservative rebels. Shows backbenchers can defeat government even with large majority. Key example for Commons effectiveness questions.
Brexit: Parliament, People, and Democracy (2016-20)(2016)(tap to reveal)- 52-48% referendum result. Three meaningful vote defeats. Prorogation attempt. Shows tension between direct and representative democracy. Biggest constitutional crisis in modern British politics.
COVID PPE and the Public Accounts Committee (2020-21)(2020)(tap to reveal)- £10.5bn awarded without competitive tender. £4.9bn to firms with no PPE experience. PAC exposed failure but no ministers resigned. Shows tension between investigative capacity and enforcement power of select committees.
EU Referendum 2016: Scotland 62% Remain, England Majority Leave - Constitutional Tension(2022)(tap to reveal)- The 2016 EU referendum produced a UK-wide result of 52% Leave, but Scotland voted 62% Remain (67% turnout) and Northern Ireland voted 55.8% Remain. This created an immediate constitutional tension: Scotland had voted decisively for a policy overturned by English votes. Nicola Sturgeon said Scotland had 'spoken decisively' for Remain and called for a second independence referendum (indyref2). The Scottish Government published a paper on holding a second referendum in 2017. Legal challenge ultimately led to the Supreme Court's 2022 ruling that Holyrood could not hold an independence referendum without Westminster consent. Northern Ireland's Remain vote created the 'Irish Border problem' that dominated subsequent Brexit negotiations.
Human Rights Act 1998: Courts Can Issue Declarations of Incompatibility(2021)(tap to reveal)- The Human Rights Act 1998 incorporated the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law, allowing citizens to enforce Convention rights in UK courts rather than going to Strasbourg. However, Parliament's supremacy was preserved - courts can issue a 'declaration of incompatibility' (finding legislation breaches the ECHR) but cannot strike it down. Parliament then decides whether to amend the law. By 2021, approximately 43 declarations of incompatibility had been issued since HRA came into force in 2000. In most cases, Parliament subsequently amended the legislation. The most contested case remains prisoner voting (Hirst v UK) where Parliament has refused to comply.