Hansard

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the parliamentary debates. The recording of debates in Parliament is a very demanding task, and one which requires special skills. Reporters work in short spells of about ten minutes each. At the end of a spell the reporter dictates his shorthand notes to a typist, and this continuous process of transcription goes on until the end of the day's business. There are a few moments of respite; at Question Time, for instance, both the Questions and the Answers are available in advance: the Questions from the Order Paper and Answers from the departments concerned. Against this, the reporting of Supplementary Questions can be particularly difficult, but reporters are free to consult with Members involved in the interest of accurate reporting. In addition to reporting debates, which in themselves are an important source of data, Hansard contains authoritative information on an extremely wide range of subjects in the form of answers to parliamentary questions. Ministers have very substantial departmental facilities which they use in framing their replies to questions, and they may also include references to other sources of information.

Abstract: In the British House of Commons on March 15, 2000, Robert Key, the Conservative MP for Salisbury, begged to move “That leave be given to bring in a Bill to prohibit the broadcasting of recorded music in certain public places” (Hansard [Parliamentary Debates]. Sixth Series, 1999-2000, vol. 346, pp. 326-327).

Abstract: This article outlines the pattern of women's participation in the Canadian parliamentary system. The question of interest is whether female members of the House of Commons make a difference in politics and, notably, if they substantively represent women. The basic underlying hypothesis is that women in the Canadian House of Commons make a difference, that is to say, they substantively represent women. However, the impact of women in politics is limited: they do indeed make a difference, but not a drastic one. In this sense, women try to shape the legislative agenda and the legislative discourse in order to promote women's issues more than do men, but their activity in favour of women's concerns remains quite limited from a numerical point of view. To achieve effective results in this study, two methods were employed: a survey given to members of the 35th Canadian Parliament, and a content analysis of the Hansard Index of the House of Commons. Overall, the results presented here provide some support for the substantive argument. On the question of whether women members of the House of Commons make a difference in politics, and, significantly, if they substantively represent women, the answer is generally positive, although it is necessary to qualify this response. Both female and male MPs speak and act to support women's issues in the House of Commons, but these activities remain quantitatively marginal. However, on each aspect considered, the group of female MPs were proportionately more involved in women's issues than their male counterparts.

Abstract: In this article I want to contribute to the critical linguistic analysis of discourse representation practices in an institutional context. I focus on the minutes of the British parliamentary proceedings. My method is that of a detailed comparison of the printed text of the report against transcripts of the spoken debates. I begin by proposing two central premises for a theory of discourse representation. Applying these to the Hansard data, two fundamental tendencies are noted which reflect the impact of macro social-linguistic determinants on discourse. These I also analyse in the light of their attending ideologies of communication. Thus, one can put forward the existence of a wider ‘representational culture’ which is typical for a literate society like Britain (and whose workings also affect linguistic theory). In addition, I take up the idea that institutions provide the level at which social formations are instantiated and transformed. In this way, I show that an understanding of the Hansard practice...