End of the road for ungodly parliamentary hours

This evening’s parliamentary sitting is the last to be held at 6pm, making it somewhat of a historic moment as MPs fully adopt family-friendly hours.

Regular parliamentary sessions have traditionally been held on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday between 6pm and 9pm, with the adjournment speech ending at 9.30pm.

A gradual shift to more family-friendly hours saw the sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday starting at 4pm and ending at 7pm, with the adjournment speech ending at 7.30pm.

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From next week, all regular parliamentary sessions will start at 4pm, completing the transformation process that started shortly after the 2017 general election.

Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne marked the occasion this evening, describing it as a “historic moment” of sorts.

MPs with young children had been clamouringfor a change in time for parliamentary sessions to make working hours more family-friendly.