Reform has pointed to a new academic report that they claim proves them right as they campaign to update Parliamentary rules excluding smaller parties from key processes. The University of Manchester published new research yesterday showing how all but the largest three parties in the Commons are being locked out of debates and committees due to outdated biases in favour of the Tories, Labour and LibDems.

It comes after Nigel Farage launched a protest last week by observing PMQs from the public gallery to highlight his exclusion from the weekly showdown. Despite leading in the past 150 opinion polls, Reform UK – alongside other smaller parties like the Greens, SNP and Plaid Cymru – are significantly limited and shut out of key decisions. Manchester University professor Dr Louise Thompson has now warned that millions of voters are being left “effectively unheard” by the outdated Commons rule book, which sees Parliament “still operating as if it were the 1950s, when two big parties dominated.”

“Smaller parties are treated unfairly in parliament’s rules, even though their MPs represent a growing share of the electorate. That creates a real democratic deficit.”

The report outlines how only the three biggest parties are given guaranteed speaking time in the chamber, and committee chairmen.

This results in MPs from smaller parties often spending hours waiting in the Chamber for the chance to speak with no guarantees of being called.

Parties like Reform and the Greens are also excluded from select committees, meaning smaller groups can’t properly scrutinise new laws.

Dr Thompson warns: “All MPs are elected equally, but inside Westminster, some are definitely more equal than others.”

“Multi-party politics is here to stay. If Parliament doesn’t modernise, it risks silencing the voices of millions of voters and undermining trust in democracy.”

The paper says Parliament should borrow ideas for reform from devolved assemblies, such as minimum thresholds for party rights and greater representation on committees.

It insists that the changes would not require “a fundamental rethink of how the House of Commons operates, but it does require adaptations in existing procedures in order to ensure certainty, consistency and parity for political party groups of all sizes and to fix existing democratic and representational deficits.”

Reacting to the research, a Reform UK spokesman told the Express: “Time and time again Parliament has shown itself to be out of touch with the British public.

“Every week we see Starmer attack Reform without our MPs ever getting the chance to respond.

“It’s clear that Parliament needs Reform.”

The House of Commons was approached for comment.