How to Be a Government Whip is a light-hearted, behind-the-scenes guide to the roles and functions of the Whips' Office, home to those party enforcers tasked with imposing discipline on members of the House of Commons. Aimed at politicians, but also to the general reader, this book will be of particular interest to those with a fascination with this most mysterious but important of roles in the British political system.
This is a guide to the forgotten `engine room' of Parliament, in which former Whip, Helen Jones, takes the reader through the day-to-day work of running parliamentary business and getting the government's legislation through the Commons and the Lords.
Jones describes the long hours and endless debates, and writes also about the dark arts employed to deal with the rebellious and the disaffected. She reveals what Whips really think of their colleagues, including ministers and former ministers, and how they view the civil servants who believe Parliament gets in the way of government.
From bringing messages from the Queen armed with a large stick, to almost killing a friend in pursuit of votes, this book will reveal the details of how the Whips' Office really works.
- ISBN13 9781785900808
- Publish Date 28 April 2016 (first published 18 April 2016)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Biteback Publishing
- Format eBook
- Pages 336
- Language English