Lengths of prorogation since 1900

Key findings (excluding first sessions of new parliaments, ie those following general elections) are:

• Between 1900 and 1930, it was not unusual for there to be lengthy breaks between sessions, a mean average of about 73 calendar days. The median average was 56 calendar days.
• Between 1930 and 2000, the mean average was about 5 calendar days between prorogation and state opening, a median average of about 5 calendar days.
• Since 2001, the mean average has been about 9 calendar days. The median average is around 7 calendar days.  

Figures for first sessions of new parliaments (ie those following a general election) are available in the data table below. These will have larger gaps between the end of the previous session and the start of the first of the new parliament, encompassing dissolution and subsequent election periods. The days between for these have not been calculated.

Methodology

The calculations provide the number of whole calendar days between the close of each session and the start of the next. Calendar days enable direct comparison across the period considered. This method avoids the need to take into account variation/expectation in sitting patterns, both in terms of when sessions start and end (eg time of year) and the days each House would have expected to sit at that time. The number of calendar days given will also include weekends and bank holidays that fell between any two dates. Additionally, they will include days it might be expected would fall within a periodic adjournment. Adjournments typically include for Easter, summer and Christmas. However, the occasions for adjournment, and the length, will vary depending on the period considered.

Cover image ©House of Commons