The political kerfuffle surrounding Brexit indeed continues to fascinate me. Having said that, I must confess I did get distracted by the rather intriguing political terms and phrases used at the UK Parliament.
The House of Commons has approved the amended No Deal Brexit motion by 321 votes to 278. Here, the current Speaker, John Bercow, announces the result of the division by using “the ayes to the right” and “the noes to the left”.
When a vote is held the Speaker in the Commons asks MPs to call out whether they agree or not – “aye” for yes vote and “no” for no vote. The Speaker will then judge whether there is a clear result. If this cannot be determined, the Speaker calls a division by announcing “clear the lobbies”.
MPs will then vote by walking through either one lobby or the other. The lobby to the right of the Chamber of the Commons – from the perspective of the Speaker – is used for those voting in favour, whereas the lobby to the left against. The corridors to the left and right of the Chamber are known as the Aye and No Lobbies.
Edison Tam MA MCIL CL is a Translator, Proofreader, and Copyeditor (zh-hk/en) who works with students, independent non-fiction writers, academic researchers, and clients from businesses and organisations of all sizes.
He is Chartered Linguist and Member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL), and has undergone wide-ranging academic training in Business, Modern Languages, and Applied Linguistics in Hong Kong, London, and Barcelona.
Image : Rt. Hon John Bercow MP, Speaker of the House of Commons, UK Parliament (from the Internet)
The Languaging Lab | 香港翻譯校對服務 