Editing Cloture (section)

{{Short description|Parliamentary procedure forcing a quick end to a debate}}
{{Use American English|date = March 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
[[File:Cloture_headline_in_The_Philadelphia_Inquirer.jpeg|thumb|Headline in ''[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]]'' of 16 November 1919 reporting the first use of cloture by the [[United States Senate]]]]
'''Cloture''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|l|oʊ|tʃ|ər}},<ref>[https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/cloture cloture] in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/cloture|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151225034040/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/cloture|url-status=dead|archive-date=25 December 2015|title=cloture: definition of cloture in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US)|work=[[OxfordDictionaries.com]]|access-date=22 February 2016}}</ref> {{IPAc-en|also|UK|ˈ|k|l|oʊ|tj|ʊər}}),<ref name="oxforddictionariesuk">{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/english/cloture|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001035036/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/english/cloture|url-status=dead|archive-date=1 October 2015|title=cloture - definition of cloture in English from the Oxford dictionary|work=[[OxfordDictionaries.com]]|access-date=22 February 2016}}</ref> '''closure'''<ref name="oz" /> or, informally, a '''guillotine''',<ref name="oz">{{Citation | title = Brief Guide No. 14 – Debating legislation under time limits| publisher=Parliament of Australia – Senate | date = 2009-06-05 | url = http://www.aph.gov.au/binaries/senate/pubs/guides/briefno14.pdf | access-date = 2012-03-14}}</ref> is a [[motion (parliamentary procedure)|motion]] or process in [[parliamentary procedure]] aimed at bringing [[debate]] to a quick end.

The cloture procedure originated in the [[National Assembly (France)|French National Assembly]], from which the name is taken. {{lang|fr|Clôture}} is [[French language|French]] for "the act of terminating something".

It was introduced into the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]] by [[William Ewart Gladstone]] to overcome the [[obstructionism]] of the [[Irish Parliamentary Party]] and was made permanent in 1887.

It was subsequently adopted by the [[United States Senate]] and other legislatures. The name ''cloture'' remains in the United States.<ref name="oxforddictionariesuk" /> In Commonwealth countries it is usually ''closure''<ref name="oxforddictionariesuk" /> or, informally, ''guillotine''. In the [[#United Kingdom|United Kingdom]]<ref name="ukparlclosure" /><ref name="allocationukparl" /> and Canada<ref name="Can Parl Review">{{cite web |title=Governing by Time Allocation: The Increasing Use of Time Allocation in the House of Commons, 1971 to 2021 – Canadian Parliamentary Review – La Revue parlementaire canadienne |url=https://www.revparlcan.ca/en/governing-by-time-allocation-the-increasing-use-of-time-allocation-in-the-house-of-commons-1971-to-2021/#:~:text=This%20article%20examines%20the%20use%20of%20time%20allocation,and%20bills%20introduced%20and%20passed%20in%20each%20Parliament. |access-date=25 May 2025 |date=1 February 2022}}</ref><ref name="Can Procedure and Practice" /> ''closure'' and ''guillotine'' are distinct motions.