View source for Crossbencher

{{short description|Independent or minor party member of a legislature}}
{{EngvarB|date=October 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2017}}

A '''crossbencher''' is a [[minor party]] or [[independent politician|independent]] member of some [[legislature]]s, such as the [[Parliament of Australia]]. In the British [[House of Lords]] the term refers to members of the [[parliamentary group]] of non-political peers. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and [[Opposition (parliamentary)|opposition]] benches, where crossbenchers sit in the chamber.

==United Kingdom==
{{Infobox political party
| name = Crossbench
| seats1_title = [[House of Lords]]
| seats1 = {{Composition bar|{{HOL|CB}}|{{HOL|TOTAL}}|{{party color|Crossbencher}}}}
}}
Crossbench members of the British [[House of Lords]] are not aligned to any particular party.<ref name="bbc">{{cite news |title=Cross benches |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/82022.stm |access-date=22 April 2020 |work=BBC News {{!}} UK {{!}} UK Politics {{!}} |date=14 August 2008}}</ref> Until 2009, these included the [[Law Lords]] appointed under the [[Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876]]. In addition, former [[Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom)|Speakers]] of the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] (such as [[Michael Martin, Baron Martin of Springburn|Lord Martin of Springburn]] and [[Betty Boothroyd|Baroness Boothroyd]]) and former [[Lord Speaker]]s of the House of Lords (such as [[Baroness Hayman]] and [[Baroness D'Souza]]), who by convention are not aligned with any party, also sit as crossbenchers. There are also some [[non-affiliated members of the House of Lords]] who are not part of the crossbencher group; this includes some officers, such as the Lord Speaker, and others who are associated with a party but have had the [[whip (politics)|whip]] withdrawn. Although non-affiliated members, and members of small parties, sometimes physically sit on the crossbenches, they are not members of the crossbench [[parliamentary group]].

An "increasing number" of crossbenchers have been created peers for non-political reasons.<ref name=History>{{cite web|url=http://www.crossbenchpeers.org.uk/history.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101018142656/http://www.crossbenchpeers.org.uk/history.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2010-10-18|title=A Brief History of the Crossbench Peers|publisher=Crossbenchpeers.org.uk}}</ref><!--{{cn|reason=for the non-political crossbenchers being a majority; 59 is less than half of 177, and e.g. speaker, several convenors were party politicians previously, and probably created because of their political position|date=October 2011}}--> Since its establishment in May 2000, the [[House of Lords Appointments Commission]] has nominated a total of 67 non-party-political life peers who joined the House of Lords as crossbenchers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://lordsappointments.independent.gov.uk/appointments-so-far.aspx|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418085208/http://lordsappointments.independent.gov.uk/appointments-so-far.aspx|url-status=dead|title=House of Lords Appointments Commission|archivedate=18 April 2015}}</ref> {{As of|{{#time:Y|{{HOL|date}}}}|{{#time:m|{{HOL|date}}}}|{{#time:d|{{HOL|date}}}}}}, there are {{HOL|CB}} crossbenchers, making up approximately {{pct|{{HOL|CB}}|{{HOL|TOTAL}}|%={{sp}}percent}} of the sitting members in the House of Lords. The Crossbench is typically the third-largest peerage group after the Conservative and Labour benches.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/lords/composition-of-the-lords/|title=Lords by party, type of peerage and gender|website=UK Parliament|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref> From April 2007 to 2009, the number of crossbenchers was higher than the number of Conservative peers for the first time.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article2022980.ece|title=Days of Conservative domination in the Lords come to an end|work=The Times|date=16 April 2007|url-access=registration}}</ref>

Although the [[Lords Spiritual]] (archbishops and senior bishops of the [[Church of England]]) also have no party affiliation, they are not considered crossbenchers and do not sit on the crossbenches, their seats being on the Government side of the Lords Chamber.<ref name=History/>

Parties supporting a minority government in a [[confidence and supply]] agreement in the House of Commons, such as the [[Democratic Unionist Party]] in the 2017–2019 Parliament, are not considered crossbenchers. Instead, along with all other non-governing parties, they are considered part of the opposition and sit on the opposition benches.

===Convenor===
The crossbenchers do not take a collective position on issues, and so have no [[whip (politics)|whip]]s; however, they do elect from among themselves a convenor for administrative purposes, and to keep them up to date with the business of the House.<ref name="bbc"/> The current convenor is [[Charles Hay, 16th Earl of Kinnoull|The Earl of Kinnoull]], who took the office in April 2023.<ref name="Earl of Kinnoull">{{cite web|url=https://members.parliament.uk/member/4354/career|title=Earl of Kinnoull|publisher=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliament]]|access-date=28 April 2023}}</ref> While convenors are not part of the "[[usual channels]]" (i.e. the party whips who decide the business of the House), they have been included in their discussions in recent years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lordsoftheblog.net/2010/01/31/constitutional-renewal-starts-at-home/#comment-10192|title=Constitutional renewal starts at home – Lords of the Blog|date=31 January 2010 |publisher=Lordsoftheblog.net|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref>

The following have served as Convenor of the Crossbenchers:<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.crossbenchpeers.org.uk/convenors.html |title=Convenors of the Crossbench Peers |access-date=23 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150516013234/http://www.crossbenchpeers.org.uk/convenors.html |archive-date=16 May 2015 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>
* 1968–1974: [[William Strang, 1st Baron Strang|The Lord Strang]]
* 1974–1995: [[Audrey Hylton-Foster, Baroness Hylton-Foster|The Baroness Hylton-Foster]]
* 1995–1999: [[Bernard Weatherill|The Lord Weatherill]] (Alternate Convenor 1993–1995)
* 1999–2004: [[David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley|The Lord Craig of Radley]]
* 2004–2007: [[David Williamson, Baron Williamson of Horton|The Lord Williamson of Horton]]
* 2007–2011: [[Frances D'Souza, Baroness D'Souza|The Baroness D'Souza]]<ref name="bbc"/>
* 2011–2015: [[Herbert Laming, Baron Laming|The Lord Laming]]
* 2015–2019: [[David Hope, Baron Hope of Craighead|The Lord Hope of Craighead]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.parliament.uk/biographies/lords/lord-hope-of-craighead/2004|title=Lord Hope of Craighead|publisher=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliament]]|access-date=9 October 2019}}</ref>
* 2019–2023: [[Igor Judge, Baron Judge|The Lord Judge]]<ref name="Lord Judge">{{cite web|url=https://www.parliament.uk/biographies/lords/lord-judge/3867|title=Lord Judge|publisher=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliament]]|access-date=9 October 2019}}</ref>
* 2023–present: [[Charles Hay, 16th Earl of Kinnoull|The Earl of Kinnoull]]<ref name="Earl of Kinnoull"/>

==Australia==
[[File:Australian Senate - Parliament of Australia.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Australian Senate]]. Crossbenchers sit in the seats between the two sides.]]
In the federal [[Parliament of Australia]] as well as the [[parliaments of the Australian states and territories]], the term {{em|crossbencher}} refers to any and all [[minor party]] and [[Independent politician|independent]] members of the parliaments.<ref name="Australian federal election 2016: the crossbenchers likely to swing a hung Parliament">{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2016/australian-federal-election-2016-the-crossbenchers-likely-to-swing-a-hung-parliament-20160702-gpx651.html |title=Australian federal election 2016: the crossbenchers likely to swing a hung Parliament |date=2 July 2016 |access-date=5 February 2017 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald }}</ref> More precisely, a crossbencher is any member who is not part of the governing party or parties, nor the party or parties forming what is known in some other Commonwealth countries as the [[official opposition]]. Unlike the United Kingdom, the term is used by both the lower and upper houses of each parliament (where applicable), who sit on the crossbenches between the government and opposition benches.<ref name="Election 2016: Where do the crossbenchers stand on the major issues?">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-08/election-2016-where-do-the-crossbenchers-stand/7578738 |title=Election 2016: Where do the crossbenchers stand on the major issues? |date=10 July 2016 |access-date=5 February 2017 |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation }}</ref>

The last few federal elections have seen an increase in the size and power of the crossbench in both houses of Parliament. The [[Australian Parliament]] as elected at the [[2010 Australian federal election|2010 election]] was the first [[hung parliament]] in the [[Australian House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] since the [[1940 Australian federal election|election of 1940]], with the [[Australian Labor Party]] and the [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] winning 72 seats each of 150 total. Six crossbenchers held the [[Balance of power (parliament)|balance of power]]: [[Australian Greens|Greens]] MP [[Adam Bandt]] and [[Independent (politics)|Independent]] MP [[Andrew Wilkie]], [[Rob Oakeshott]] and [[Tony Windsor]] declared their support for Labor on [[confidence and supply]], Independent MP [[Bob Katter]] and [[National Party of Western Australia]] MP [[Tony Crook (politician)|Tony Crook]] declared their support for the Coalition on confidence and supply. The resulting 76–74 margin entitled Labor to form a [[minority government]].

The Australian Senate, which uses the [[single transferable vote]] form of [[proportional representation]] to elect its 76-seat chamber, frequently has enough Senators on the crossbench that the governing party has to negotiate with it to get legislation passed. The [[2016 Australian federal election|2 July 2016 double dissolution election]], for example resulted in a chamber with the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal]]/[[National Party of Australia|National]] [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] having 30 seats, the [[Australian Labor Party]] with 26 seats, the [[Australian Greens|Greens]] with 9 seats, [[Pauline Hanson's One Nation|One Nation]] with 4 seats and the [[Nick Xenophon Team]] with 3 seats. The other 4 seats were each won by [[Derryn Hinch]], the [[Liberal Democratic Party (Australia)|Liberal Democratic Party]], [[Family First Party|Family First]], and [[Jacqui Lambie]]. The number of crossbenchers increased by two to a record 20 (all but the ones of the LPA/NPA coalition and the ALP: 9+4+3+4). The Liberal/National Coalition government required at least nine additional votes to reach a Senate majority.{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}<!-- WP:RS needed; removed link to WP:SPS (Twitter, FB, WP)--><ref name="abc senate results">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/federal-election-2016/results/senate/ |title=Federal Election 2016: Senate Results |date=3 July 2016 |access-date=4 July 2016 |work=Australia Votes |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation}}</ref><ref name=photofinish>{{cite web|url=https://blogs.crikey.com.au/pollbludger/2016/07/12/senate-photo-finishes/ |title=Senate photo finishes |publisher=Blogs.crikey.com.au |date=12 July 2016 |access-date=30 July 2016}}</ref>

Generally speaking, Senators broadly aligned with the Coalition (such as those affiliated with the [[Australian Conservatives]], One Nation, the Liberal Democratic Party, and Derryn Hinch) sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Coalition benches, while those more aligned with Labor, such as the Greens, sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Labor benches.<ref name="Senate Seating plan">{{cite web|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Seating_Plan |title=Senate Seating Plan |access-date=7 May 2017 |work=Parliament of Australia }}</ref> This tends not to be the case in the House of Representatives, both due to the different electoral system, which means fewer crossbenchers are elected, and the fact that the official government and opposition [[frontbencher|frontbenches]] extend across the inner rim of the entire hemicycle.<ref name="House of Representatives Seating plan">{{cite web|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/House_of_Representatives/House_of_Representatives_Seating_Plan |title=House of Representatives Seating plan |access-date=7 May 2017 |work=Parliament of Australia }}</ref>

==New Zealand==
In the [[New Zealand House of Representatives]], MPs from parties that are not openly aligned with either the government or the official opposition (such as those belonging to [[New Zealand First]] from 2011 to 2017) are sometimes referred to as crossbenchers,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/18/new-zealand-vote-strangest-dirtiest-election-campaign|title=New Zealand prepares to vote after 'strangest, dirtiest' election campaign|last=Manhire|first=Toby|date=18 September 2014|work=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/john-armstrong-winston-becoming-nzs-churchill/QCPE27WZ5YCNTZOGBBRE2ORYVE/|work=[[The New Zealand Herald]]|title=John Armstrong: Winston becoming NZ's Churchill|last=Armstrong|first=John|date=8 August 2015}}</ref> but those who support the government in [[confidence and supply]] agreements are regarded as part of the government and sit on the government benches, and often receive official roles as ministers outside the cabinet or as parliamentary under-secretaries. From 2008 to 2017, [[ACT New Zealand]], [[Te Pāti Māori]] and [[United Future]] MPs supported the minority [[New Zealand National Party|National Party]] government. As such, these MPs were not considered to be crossbenchers or part of the opposition, as they were represented within the government.

==Similar concepts in Canada==
{{more citations needed section|date=August 2016}}
The term "crossbencher" is generally not used for the federal [[Parliament of Canada]] or any of the [[Legislative assemblies of Canadian provinces and territories|provincial or territorial legislatures]].  Instead, any party that is not the governing party is an "opposition party", with the largest of these designated the [[Official Opposition (Canada)|''official'' opposition]] (and their leader is designated [[Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada)|Leader of the Opposition]]). Opposition parties other than the official opposition are typically called third parties. Third parties that hold a certain threshold of seats are granted [[official party status]]. In 2022 the "official opposition" is the Conservatives; the Bloc Québécois, the NDP, and the Greens are the opposition.

Beginning in 2016, multiple non-partisan caucuses which fulfill a similar purpose as crossbenchers were formed in the [[Senate of Canada]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/independent-senators-form-non-partisan-group-1.3484900|title=6 senators to form 'independent, non-partisan' working group|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://sencanada.ca/en/Content/Sen/committee/421/mdrn/52767-e|title=Senate of Canada – Special Senate Committee on Senate Modernization|first=Senate of|last=Canada|website=Senate of Canada|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref> The first, the [[Independent Senators Group]] (ISG), was created partly as a response to Prime Minister [[Justin Trudeau]]'s decision to appoint more non-partisan Senators.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/justin-trudeau-names-nine-non-partisan-senators/|title=Justin Trudeau names nine non-partisan senators – Macleans.ca|date=27 October 2016|newspaper=Macleans.ca|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref> Similar to crossbenchers in the UK, the ISG chooses its own leader and does not use a whipping system. In December 2016, the Senate began to officially recognise the ISG and provide it with funding.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hilltimes.com/2016/12/12/winning-battle-committee-memberships-independent-senators-group-want-budget-542428-722000/90531|title=Independent Senators to get seats on committees, now group wants $542,428–$722,000 for staff – The Hill Times|date=12 December 2016|publisher=Hilltimes.com|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref> Two additional groups were established in 2019: the [[Canadian Senators Group]] (which primarily focuses on regional issues) and the [[Progressive Senate Group]] (formed by members of the defunct [[Senate Liberal Caucus]]).
The Canadian Senate in 2022 generally aspires towards non-partisanship. Non-affiliated members outnumber members affiliated with a political party, and the Liberal Caucus in the Senate was dissolved in 2019.

==See also==
* [[Backbencher]]
* [[Frontbencher]]
* [[:Category:Crossbench peers]]
* [[Third party (politics)|Third party]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20020124092744/http://www.crossbenchpeers.org.uk/ Crossbench Peers – official site]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/82022.stm BBC Politics – Crossbench Peers]
*[https://archives.parliament.uk/collections/getrecord/GB61_CBP UK Parliamentary Archives, Records of Crossbench Peers]

{{Convenor of Crossbench Peers}}

[[Category:House of Lords]]
[[Category:Australian Senate]]
[[Category:Organizational structure of political parties]]