Your petitions and the 2019 General Election: FAQs

Why is the petitions site closing?

The petitions site will close at 00.01am (just after midnight) on Wednesday 6 November because the General Election means that Parliament has to be dissolved. When there is a general election, Parliament closes for a few weeks before the vote, for the election campaign. The petitions website is part of the official work of Parliament, so it has to stop too.

What will happen to the petitions?

All petitions that were open on the site will be closed and will no longer be able to be signed. They won't be reopened after the election. They'll still be available for people to read on the site.

My petition got 10,000 signatures before the site closed. Will the Government still have to respond?

The Government can't respond during the election period. It will be up to the new Government to decide whether it wants to respond to petitions from before the election.

My petition got 100,000 signatures before the site closed. Will it get debated?

The current Petitions Committee (the group of MPs who decide which petitions are debated) will no longer exist when Parliament is dissolved. There will be a new Petitions Committee after the election, and decisions about petition debates will become the responsibility of that Committee. 

Will my petition be opened again after the general election?

No. You'll need to start a new petition once the site re-opens.

Can I carry over the signatures my petition has already collected?

No. You'll need to start a new petition and collect new signatures. This can include people who signed your previous petition.

When can I start a new petition?

The petitions site will open again as soon as the House of Commons sets up a new Petitions Committee. We don't know yet exactly when that will happen. You can follow us on Twitter @HoCPetitions for updates, or check back on the petitions site for news if you prefer.

When will petitions be considered for debate?

Petitions will be considered for debate when the House of Commons sets up a new Petitions Committee.  We don't know yet exactly when this will happen.

What happens to Committees when there is a general election?

Following the Dissolution of Parliament on 6 November, all select committees, including the Petitions Committee, cease to exist. Until the committees are reappointed in the new Parliament following the General Election on 12 December, there are no chairs or members of committees.

The information on these pages refers to the Petitions Committee and its work before Parliament was dissolved.

Further information

We'll make sure to keep this website up to date with any news about the new Petitions Committee. You can also follow us on Twitter @HoCPetitions for updates. We'll start tweeting again once a new Chair for the Committee has been elected. This is likely to be a few weeks after the general election.

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