A motion of no confidence, also called a vote of no confidence, a censure motion, a no-confidence motion, or simply a confidence motion, is a parliamentary motion traditionally put before a parliament by the opposition in the hope of defeating or embarrassing a government. On rare occasions, it may also be put on the parliamentary order paper by an erstwhile supporter who has lost confidence in the government. The motion is passed or rejected by means of a parliamentary vote (a vote of no confidence). In the British Parliament it generally first appears as an early day motion although the vote on the Queen's Speech also constitutes a Confidence Motion.
Governments often respond to a motion of no confidence by proposing a motion of confidence which, according to parliamentary procedure in the Westminster system, takes precedence and so replaces the motion of no confidence.
In presidential systems, the legislature may occasionally pass motions of no confidence, as was done against United States Secretary of State Dean Acheson in the 1950s and was recently contemplated against Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, but these motions are of symbolic effect only. Presidential systems also usually have the procedure of impeachment by which an executive or judicial officer can be removed, but these procedures generally require a super-majority and the standard for impeachment generally requires some crime to have been committed.
In certain parts of the United States, Canada, and Venezuela, the recall election fills a similar role of removing an unpopular government, but in contrast to the motion of no confidence this vote involves the entire electorate.
The first motion of no confidence occurred in March 1782 when, following the defeat of the British army at Yorktown in the American Revolutionary War, the Parliament of Great Britain voted that they "can no longer repose confidence in the present ministers." The then Prime Minister, Lord North, responded by asking King George III to accept his resignation. This did not immediately create a constitutional convention; however, during the early 19th century, attempts by Prime Ministers to govern in the absence of a parliamentary majority proved unsuccessful, and by the mid 19th century, the ability of a motion of no confidence to break a government was firmly established in the UK.
Typically, when parliament votes no confidence, or where it fails to vote confidence, a government must either:
This procedure is either formalised through constitutional convention as is the case with the United Kingdom or explicitly stated in the constitutional law as is the case with Germany and Spain.
Where a government has lost the confidence of the responsible house (i.e., the directly elected lower chamber which can select and dismiss it, as in Spain; in some states both houses of parliament are responsible), a head of state may have the constitutional right to refuse a request for a parliamentary dissolution, so forcing an immediate resignation.
