Petitions
The nutshell
A petition is a way to ask the government or Parliament to change something. If 10,000 people sign a petition on the UK Parliament website, the government must reply. If 100,000 people sign it, MPs may debate it.
Every fact on this page comes from the official petition rules and non-partisan explainers. Each source tag — like Parl — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
What a petition is
A petition is a formal way to ask the government or Parliament to do something, like change a law. The main one runs on the UK Parliament website, where a petition asks for a change to the law or to government policy.GOV Only a British citizen or a UK resident can start or sign a petition.GOV
What signatures unlock
A petition needs signatures — the names of people who back it. At 10,000 signatures, the government must give a written reply.Parl At 100,000 signatures, the petition is considered for a debate by MPs, and most reach one.Parl
Who looks after petitions
A group of MPs called the Petitions Committee checks the petitions. The committee has 11 MPs from the government and opposition parties.ParlThe petitions system started in its current form in 2015 and is run jointly by the government and the House of Commons.HoC
The limits of a petition
Reaching 100,000 signatures does not promise a debate — a petition is only considered for one.Parl The Institute for Government has said that hitting the threshold does not force ministers to act or change a law.IfG A petition also stays open for just six months.Parl
- Any British citizen or UK resident can start or sign a petition on the official site, according to GOV.UK
- A petition that reaches 10,000 signatures gets a written response from the government, the UK Parliament site says
- A petition that reaches 100,000 signatures is considered for a debate by MPs, and most are debated, according to UK Parliament
- Reaching 100,000 signatures does not guarantee a debate — a petition is only considered for one, the UK Parliament site says
- The Institute for Government notes that hitting a threshold does not force ministers to act or change the law
- A petition must be about something the UK government or Parliament is responsible for, and it stays open for six months, according to GOV.UK and UK Parliament
The deep end6 min
How the modern petitions system was built
The current UK petitions system dates from 2015. The House of Commons Library records that it is run jointly by the government and the House of Commons, with a Petitions Committee that examines both paper petitions and e-petitions.HoCGovernment departments write the responses, and debates are usually held in Westminster Hall, a second debating room away from the main Commons chamber.HoC
What the thresholds actually do
Two signature levels matter. At 10,000 signatures the government must publish a written response.Parl At 100,000 signatures the Petitions Committee considers the petition for a debate, and most petitions at that level are debated.Parl GOV.UK sets out what a petition may cover — a change to the law or to government policy — and limits who may sign to British citizens and UK residents.GOV
Where petitions fall short
The Institute for Government, an independent think tank, has said that reaching 100,000 signatures does not automatically lead to a debate or action by ministers. A petition at that level is considered for debate, not promised one, and the link between the threshold and any government action is not clear.IfG The Petitions Committee decides which petitions are debated, and may set one aside if the subject has been debated recently.Parl
Signing a petition is one route to raise an issue. Other routes include contacting an MP, joining a campaign group, or voting at an election. The topics on being heard beyond voting and on pressure groups look at those routes.