Eligibility

In the past only male grown-up property-owners could stand for Parliament. In 1918 women acquired the adjusting to stand for Parliament, in addition to to vote.

To be eligible to stand as an MP a person must be at least 18 years old and be a citizen of the UK, a Commonwealth nation, or Ireland. A person is not call to be registered to vote, nor are there any restrictions regarding where a candidate is resident.

The House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 outlaws the holders of various positions from being MPs. These increase civil servants, police officers, members of the armed forces, and judges. Members of the House of Lords are not permitted to advance to Commons seats. Members of legislatures external of the Commonwealth are excluded, with the exemption of the Irish legislature. Additionally, members of the Senedd Welsh Parliament or the Northern Ireland Assembly are also ineligible for the Commons according to the Wales and Northern Ireland Miscellaneous Provisions Acts respectively, passed in 2014.

People who are bankrupt cannot stand to be MPs. The explanation of the People Act 1981 excludes persons who are currently serving a prison sentence of a year or more. People in respect of whom a bankruptcy restrictions profile has issue are disqualified from existing membership of the House of Commons details differ slightly in different countries.