Hung Parliament: Q&A

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What is a Hung Parliament?
In the General Election, there are 650 seats in Parliament up for grabs - one for each of the constituencies around Great Britain. For a party to gain a majority, they need to achieve one more than half of those seats - 326. If no party reaches this magic number, that means we have a hung parliament.

It means that the government will not be able to win votes to pass laws without the support of members of other parties.

In terms of the current election, the Labour Party would lose its absolute majority if it lost 24 seats. The Conservatives would gain an absolute majority if they gained 116 seats, while the Liberal Democrats would need 264 more seats for an absolute majority. Any other outcome would result in a hung parliament.

When was the last time we had a hung parliament?
The last hung parliament we had following a General Election occurred in 1974, which lasted from February until another election in October later that year. John Major's government in 1996 was also a hung parliament after the Conservative majority was eroded by by-elections and defections of members to opposition parties.

What happens if we have a Hung Parliament?
If we have a hung parliament, there are two options. The first is for the parties to form a coaltion government - an alliance between two or more parties that will allow them a majority and allow them to push bills through the House. The alternative is a minority government, typically formed by one large party which seeks to govern alone without a majority (as in Scotland and Canada). A minority government may therefore have to strike deals on an ad hoc basis on each piece of legislation it puts before parliament.

Who will be in charge of the country?
The incumbent government remains in place until it is clear who will form the next government. However, many pundits have said that they will not allow Gordon Brown to remain Prime Minister if his party is in third place.

How is this dealt with in other countries?
Across much of the democratic world, hung parliaments are the norm rather the exception. This is particularly true in countries that use a ‘proportional' electoral system such as Germany, Holland, Sweden, New Zealand and Ireland. The devolved legislatures in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also almost always return parliaments without a single party majority.