Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the Isle of Man all have claims to have the oldest parliament in history, all of which were founded in the 9th and 10th centuries.
100 Mind-Blowing Parliament Facts
Sir Keir Starmer has the most diverse Parliament the UK has ever seen, in terms of race and gender. The BBC say that for the first time in parliamentary history, the proportion of women elected is more than 40%. Meanwhile, the proportion of MPs from ethnic-minority backgrounds is now a record 14%.
Ioannis Ikonomou has been the chief translator of the European Parliament since 2002. This Greek translator has 32 languages under his belt and even knows languages outside of the EU. How’s that for a hidden talent?
In 2005, Australia banned the word “mate.” Due to complaints, the Australian Parliament once banned the use of “mate” at work. However, it didn’t last too long, and the ruling was withdrawn in 24 hours.
Hitler was once nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1939, Adolf Hitler was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. He received the nomination the same year that WWII began. A member of the Swedish parliament only nominated Hitler for the Nobel Peace Prize as a satiric criticism of another historical figure who was nominated. The nomination was promptly withdrawn.
Isaac Newton was a member of the British parliament for one year. He spoke only once, and that was to tell someone to please close the window.
Christmas is cancelled. A Christmas-themed one from the brilliant Joanna McCunn on that old chestnut, did Cromwell ban Christmas… In 1644 the Puritan parliament declared every last Wednesday of the month would be a legally mandated fast day. Christmas Day fell on the last Wednesday of the month so no feasting was to be allowed that year. Time should be spent in even more solemn humiliation, repenting of your sins for making Christmas a time of carnal and sensual delights in the past. In 1647 they went the whole hog, banning all celebrations of Christmas and Easter for good! (Charles II reversed this when he came to the throne in 1660).
The “unparliamentary language” prohibited to be used in the parliament includes words like ass, blackguard, coward, git, guttersnipe, hooligan, hypocrite, idiot ignoramus, pipsqueak, rat, slimy, sod, squirt, stoolpigeon, swine, tart, traitor and wart.
Structure: The Parliament is divided into two houses: the House of Commons and the House of Lords, both of which have unique roles and memberships.
Iconic Structure: Big Ben, housed in the Elizabeth Clock Tower, is a notable landmark of the Houses of Parliament.
In December 2023, the European Parliament released an Artificial Intelligence Act, a regulation that aims to protect citizens from “high risks of AI.”