Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Parliament's first week is the 2026 election campaign writ small, from departing MPs, to the week's 13-hour long debate over whether the government should continue.
The departing MPs announced during Parliament's first week back are not the only taster of the election to come. Parliament's primary business is formally reaffirming its confidence in the current government.
MPs vote on this after a lengthy set-piece event called the Debate on the Prime Minister's Statement. It takes 13 hours of intense political bomb-throwing but is already a foregone conclusion. The three coalition party leaders have all spoken and affirmed they are - surprise, surprise - keen to stay in charge.
The debate is an early taste of election rhetoric as MPs and parties warm into election season.
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