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Actually this is the continuation of this article, which I asked about prior.

And now I am facing a very subtly confusing statement from Boris Johnson.

He says, (from the 4th paragraph)

"If we can get a working majority we can get parliament working for you, we can get out of the rut.

What does this "working majority" mean here in this context?

Thank you in advance(m_m).

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A "working majority" is a technical term in a Parliamentary system.

If a party has more than 50% of the MPs, it has a majority. But if it only has 50.1% then if any of its MPs rebel, or are sick, or change party then the party can still lose votes. And a party that loses votes in Parliament can't work.

However, if the party has a "big enough" majority, then even if a few MPs rebel, it can still win all the votes in the parliament. This is called a "working majority".

A party with a working majority is usually certain to win all the votes in the Parliament and can pass any law that it wants. In the UK parliament, a majority of more than about 20 is considered to be a working majority.

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  • You wrote a much better answer. I will delete mine. – AIQ Nov 14 at 21:15
  • Thank you for your answer. I am sorry, however, the "big enough" majority can be called as the "working majority"? British English is difficult :). – Kentaro Nov 14 at 21:18
  • Yes, a "Big enough" majority is a "working majority" It is big enough that the party will probably win every vote. – James K Nov 14 at 21:21

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