Restricting or altering services to the public policy

The House of Commons Service reserves the right to determine if behaviour and actions are unacceptable. Services may be restricted, altered or withdrawn in these circumstances. At all times, the well-being and safety of staff will take priority.

Unacceptable behaviour and actions may include, but not be limited to:

• Aggressive or abusive behaviour – behaviour or language that causes staff to feel afraid, threatened or abused
• Unreasonable demands – requests that would impact adversely on our ability to carry out our core functions or provide a service for others
• Unreasonable persistence – repeated requests on the same or a similar issue when no further information can usefully be provided and that disrupt our ability to carry out our core functions or provide a service to others

The threat or use of physical violence will be reported to the Parliamentary Security Department and/or the police and legal team.  

Written communication (in any format) that is abusive towards staff or which contains offensive statements or bad language will not usually receive a response and may also be reported to the police or legal team where appropriate.

House of Commons and bicameral teams operate within this policy. Local processes are in place to ensure the policy is applied appropriately and in line with operational arrangements and legal requirements. This policy does not affect an individual’s statutory rights.

Further guidance is provided in Parliament’s Behaviour Code and Bullying and Harassment Policy.