King's Speech Motion for an Address: amendment (i)
108Ayes
323Noes
Defeated · majority 215 · Government won214 did not vote
645 Members · Aye 108 · No 323 · DNV 214 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament defeated an opposition amendment to the King's Speech on 19 May 2026, with 323 MPs voting against it and 108 in favour. The amendment, tabled by Conservative shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho, criticised the government's plan to ban new oil and gas exploration licences, called for approval of the Rosebank oil field and the Jackdaw gas field, urged a presumption in favour of new drilling licences, and expressed regret at the cancellation of a third large-scale nuclear power station at Wylfa. The vote matters because the King's Speech sets out the government's entire legislative programme, and this amendment targeted its energy policy specifically. A Conservative victory would have registered a formal parliamentary objection to the planned Energy Independence Bill, which includes banning new oil and gas licences, introducing minimum energy efficiency standards for private renters, and raising the electricity generator levy. Defeat means the government's agenda faces no immediate parliamentary obstacle, and the ban on new licences, along with the warm homes plan and windfall tax provisions, proceeds on its current legislative path. The Conservatives voted 99 to zero in favour of the amendment. The Democratic Unionist Party added five aye votes, while one Labour MP, one independent, one Restore Britain MP, and one Traditional Unionist Voice MP also voted aye. Labour and its Co-operative Party allies voted 313 to one against, with the Greens, the SDLP, and one independent joining them in the no lobby. The SNP, which might typically have supported an amendment critical of the government, did not vote with the Conservatives here, consistent with the SNP's shifting position on North Sea licences that Energy Secretary Ed Miliband noted during the debate.
Voting Aye meant
Support the opposition's amendment criticising the government's legislative programme as set out in the King's Speech
Voting No meant
Reject the opposition's amendment and endorse the government's stated legislative agenda
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped No
1
280
79
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
99
0
17
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
72
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped No
0
33
9
Independent
—
1
3
9
Reform UK
—
1
0
7
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
7
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
5
0
0
Green Party of England and Wales
Whipped No
0
5
0
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
1
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
1
0
0
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
1
0
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
1
0
0
Your Party
—
0
1
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
The energy independence Bill is economically self-harm; the government should approve Rosebank and Jackdaw, abolish the carbon tax, and recognise North Sea oil and gas as essential to UK energy security and industrial jobs.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,483 words) →
Energy independence through clean, home-grown renewables protects the UK from fossil fuel price shocks; new oil and gas licences will not materially affect capacity or bills, and the transition must be managed fairly for workers.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (3,456 words) →
The government's energy independence approach is broadly welcome, but must go further and faster on community energy, solar on public buildings, and grid reform; new North Sea licences are marginal and a just transition commission is needed.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (1,790 words) →
The North Sea is a super-mature basin in decline; new licences will not stop the decline and the economic case for clean energy and transition support for oil and gas workers is strong.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (1,286 words) →
A gradual transition away from fossil fuels is sensible, but exporting emissions to Qatar and the US while ignoring North Sea resources is ideological folly; energy costs are the real blocker to industrial growth.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,479 words) →
The government's energy independence and nuclear regulation Bills are essential to break dependency on global markets; the Opposition's alternative is incoherent and ignores the £44 billion cost of the Ukraine energy crisis.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (1,253 words) →
Small nuclear reactors should be prioritized, but the North Sea resource must be used to bridge the gap; solar should be placed on rooftops and car parks, not prime agricultural land, and grid cabling must be undergrounded.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (753 words) →
Energy security is vital, but the government must also regulate AI development and address the labour market disruption it will cause, requiring co-ordination with the EU.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (873 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0