Crossbencher

A crossbencher is a minor party or independent member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia.

[3] As of 10 February 2025[update], there are 184 crossbenchers, making up approximately 22 percent of the sitting members in the House of Lords.

The crossbenchers do not take a collective position on issues, and so have no whips; however, they do elect from among themselves a convenor for administrative purposes, and to keep them up to date with the business of the House.

[6] While convenors are not part of the "usual channels" (i.e. the party whips who decide the business of the House), they have been included in their discussions in recent years.

Unlike the United Kingdom, the term is used by both the lower and upper houses of each parliament (where applicable), who sit on the crossbenches between the government and opposition benches.

[citation needed][13][14] Generally speaking, Senators broadly aligned with the Coalition (such as those affiliated with the Australian Conservatives, One Nation, the Liberal Democratic Party, and Derryn Hinch) sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Coalition benches, while those more aligned with Labor, such as the Greens, sit on the same side of the crossbench as the Labor benches.

[15] This tends not to be the case in the House of Representatives, both due to the different electoral system, which means fewer crossbenchers are elected, and the fact that the official government and opposition frontbenches extend across the inner rim of the entire hemicycle.

From 2008 to 2017, ACT New Zealand, Te Pāti Māori and United Future MPs supported the minority National Party government.

Beginning in 2016, multiple non-partisan caucuses which fulfill a similar purpose as crossbenchers were formed in the Senate of Canada.