Two Northampton North residents who take a keen interest in national politics wrote to me some time ago to ask if they could visit the House of Commons to watch proceedings from the Stranger’s Gallery.
I was happy to arrange tickets for them to watch a popular debate in the last fortnight and I was pleased to meet them beforehand to have a chat with them about politics and the Palace of Westminster.
For most debates at the House of Commons tickets (which are always free of charge) are quite easy to obtain on the door and there is usually sufficient space to not have to worry about the gallery being full. However there are a few set-piece occasions when demand far outstrips supply, such as for example when the Chancellor of the Exchequer gives his Budget speech or at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions, when the extreme popularity of the occasion means that tickets have to be booked months in advance and even then are limited in availability.
You do not need to contact me or any MP for routine access to the Stranger’s Gallery for most debates. If you happen to be visiting London you can just turn up on the day. However it is always worth checking that the House is actually sitting and what debate is going on, as this can affect availability, so it is probably safer to look into the matter in advance.
If you would like to contact me to say that you would like to visit to watch debates please do feel free to email me, and if at all possible I will then also try to come out to meet any residents of Northampton North and say hello.