Thread by @MoAD_Canberra

It’s Friday, it’s been a *week* & we can’t think of any #Fridaythe13th-related content... so without further ado, here’s a thread we’re going to call ‘fun @UKParliament facts that our researcher Campbell keeps telling us in the office’

@UKParliament Because our system is derived from Britain's, we share a lot of concepts & can learn a lot about our own parliament by investigating theirs.

Because their system is so... *distinctive*... these are fun facts that are actually fun...

@UKParliament PS this isn't about Brexit! But if that's your thing we've had a look at it here:
moadoph.gov.au/blog/could-a-p…

and took a look at WAxit here: moadoph.gov.au/blog/breaking-…

@UKParliament ok so that was a bit of ado, but now let's talk about #Woolsacks... The presiding officer of the House of Lords is the Lord Speaker-they sit on a sort of cushion called the Woolsack. Originally, this was a big bale of wool (symbolising the importance of England's Ag industry)...

@UKParliament ...but then in 1938 it turned out it was all a lie! It was discovered that the Woolsack was actually stuffed with horse hair! 🤯

@UKParliament It was re-stuffed with wool taken from all over the Commonwealth to symbolise the trade ties between the former British Empire. When the Lord Speaker sits on the Woolsack now, part of their cushioning is Australian wool! 🇦🇺🐑

@UKParliament The 1975 Dismissal of the Whitlam gov couldn't have happened in Britain-the Lords wouldn't have been able to block supply as the Senate did (The House of Lords cannot reject money bills & has strong restrictions on its capacity to veto or even delay other types of legislation)

@UKParliament While no smoking is permitted in the @HouseofCommons , members are permitted to take snuff! (There's even an official snuff box held by a doorkeeper for this purpose)

Ping @AboutTheHouse

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse Members of the House of Commons cannot read their speeches. Australian MPs can, and do, read verbatim, but their British counterparts are on hard mode, forced to rely on notes only!

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse The only person permitted to drink anything in the chamber is the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the equivalent to Australia’s Treasurer), who is permitted an alcoholic beverage of their choice while delivering the annual budget.

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse Most Chancellors since the 1990s have simply had water. Australian MPs and Senators are furnished with water in the chamber – in one famous incident in 1965, future Prime Minister Gough Whitlam threw a glass of water at minister, and future Governor-General, Paul Hasluck!

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse Both Britain’s and Aust’s parliaments are famous for their tradition of a robust, rowdy question time. In the UK, the PM only has to front up to the House for questions an hour a week. Aus PMs & their colleagues have it much tougher, subject to questioning every sitting day

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse ...oh, and the carpet in the House of Lords is blue! The benches are red, but the carpet is blue. Weird.

@UKParliament @HouseofCommons @AboutTheHouse Anyway, thanks for coming to Campbell's TED Talk. Plenty more fun facts where those came from! We might even try this again next Friday