Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Culture, Media and Sport – in the House of Commons am 2:30 pm ar 2 Mawrth 2009.
Gerry Sutcliffe
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) (Sport)
2:30,
2 Mawrth 2009
The Licensing Act has resulted in a considerable reduction in red tape. Administrative savings are estimated at £99 million per annum, with benefits not just for business but for the third sector and non-profit-making clubs. Although we do not have specific data on the impact on small businesses, they represent the Majority of applicants and will thus be major beneficiaries of these savings.
The term "majority" is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government cannot operate effectively unless it can command a majority in the House of Commons - a majority means winning more than 50% of the votes in a division. Should a Government fail to hold the confidence of the House, it has to hold a General Election. Secondly the term can also be used in an election, where it refers to the margin which the candidate with the most votes has over the candidate coming second. To win a seat a candidate need only have a majority of 1.
