One of my roles as a Government Whip is to count the number of MPs going through the Aye or No lobby when we vote and then report the result formally in the UK House of Commons alongside one other government whip and two opposition whips.
MPs leave the debating chamber and physically walk through the hallways or 'lobbies' to the right and left of the chamber: indicating they support or disapprove of the motion. As they pass through the exit door of each lobby we count them and declare the result once everyone has cleared/ exited the lobbies. We also record the way each MP voted in each lobby.
If you wish to abstain you can either not vote at all or walk through both lobbies.
From the time a vote is called and the 'division bell' goes off, MPs have eight minutes to get to the lobbies. As the parliamentary estate is large, if you are not in the chamber when the vote is called but perhaps in your office or another building on the edge of the estate you sometimes have to run to make it to the voting lobby in time.
Sometimes MPs miss it by a few seconds as the lobby doors are closed and locked in front of them.
Here is a brief clip from earlier this week following a vote on a proposed amendment to a Bill. There is a strict process and specific wording to be used as you will see...
