Meetings have been part of everyday life since the times of tribal and village elders. The notion of gathering for discussion is integral to social and political life, and is given various names – tribal meeting, pow wow, and, in the classical Greek agora or the Roman forum, orations and questions. They may be highly ritualised, as is the case of courts of law and of legislatures, or distinctly less structured, as is the case with meetings of the Society of Friends (Quakers), who speak when the spirit moves them. The latter approach would not work in so formal an organisation as a legislature.

The vigorous interchange that is so characteristic of legislatures, particularly in party politics, is such that a set of rules governing conduct is essential. It is interesting to note that the two most formal sets of procedures known to us are the legislature and the courts. In legislatures there is a vigorous interchange across the floor that would not be tolerated in court. It is left to the reader's imagination as to why there should be such a behavioural difference.

When the spirit (or the Chair) moves someone to speak, that person should preferably use plain language. Most people know that some language can be so inflated as to be incomprehensible. The notion of using plain language has many merits, and has an advocate in Asprey (2010). Unless there is a compelling reason, there is no point in using seemingly inflated language when plain English is both more concise and more comprehensible.