canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/parliament.uk/parliament-uk-erskine-may

# UK Parliament Erskine May API

UK Parliament Erskine May API provides searchable access to Erskine May's Parliamentary Practice, the authoritative guide to UK parliamentary procedure and constitutional law. The API enables browsing and searching the full text by parts, chapters, sections, paragraphs, and index terms, retrieving section content with footnotes and cross-references, searching sections by title or paragraph content, browsing the index by start letter, and searching index terms with references to relevant paragraphs. Public and unauthenticated access.

## For AI agents

Search and retrieve UK parliamentary procedure rules from Erskine May's Parliamentary Practice.

## Scope

Does not include Bills, votes, or member data - use only for Erskine May's Parliamentary Practice content and index.

## Capabilities

- List all parts of Erskine May with chapters and sections
- Retrieve a specific part, chapter, or section with full content and footnotes
- Search sections by title or paragraph content with pagination
- Search paragraphs by reference (e.g., '12.34') to jump directly to content
- Browse the index by start letter (A-Z) with pagination
- Search index terms by keyword with references to paragraphs
- Navigate sections with step-forward/step-back functionality

## Use cases

### Parliamentary Procedure Research

Clerks, researchers, and legal professionals reference Erskine May for authoritative guidance on procedure. GET `/api/Search/SectionSearchResults/{searchTerm}` finds sections by title (e.g., 'amendments'). GET `/api/Section/{sectionId}` retrieves full content with footnotes. GET `/api/Search/ParagraphSearchResults/{searchTerm}` searches within paragraph text for detailed rules.

Example prompt: GET `/api/Search/SectionSearchResults/{searchTerm}`?skip=0&take=20 to find sections, then GET `/api/Section/{sectionId}` to read full content with footnotes.

### Index-Based Navigation

Users familiar with Erskine May's index browse by start letter. GET `/api/IndexTerm/browse`?startLetter={A-Z} returns index terms for that letter. GET `/api/IndexTerm/{indexTermId}` retrieves the term with references (paragraph numbers) and 'see also' links for cross-references.

Example prompt: GET `/api/IndexTerm/browse`?startLetter=A&skip=0&take=20 to list terms, then GET `/api/IndexTerm/{indexTermId}` for references and cross-links.

## Key endpoints

| Method | Path | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GET | `/api/Part` | List all parts |
| GET | `/api/Chapter/{chapterNumber}` | Get chapter overview |
| GET | `/api/Section/{sectionId}` | Get section content with footnotes |
| GET | `/api/Search/SectionSearchResults/{searchTerm}` | Search sections by title |
| GET | `/api/Search/ParagraphSearchResults/{searchTerm}` | Search paragraphs by content |
| GET | `/api/IndexTerm/browse` | Browse index terms by start letter |
| GET | `/api/Search/IndexTermSearchResults/{searchTerm}` | Search index terms |

## Key resources

- **Parts** — Top-level divisions of Erskine May (e.g., Procedure, Privilege, Financial Procedure)
- **Chapters** — Chapters within parts covering specific topics
- **Sections** — Sections within chapters with full text, footnotes, and subsections
- **Index Terms** — Alphabetical index entries with paragraph references and cross-references

## Why Jentic

- **Setup:** Wiring the UK Parliament Erskine May API by hand means pointing a client at its public host, shaping the Part, Chapter, Section, and search routes, and handling pagination yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import the Erskine May API from the API Directory, and your agent calls it with no credential to manage.
- **Permission scoping:** The Erskine May API puts the chapter and section identifiers in the URL path (`/api/Chapter/{chapterNumber}`, `/api/Section/{sectionId}`), so a rule can pin your agent to the read-only content and search lookups. Since this public API only reads parliamentary-practice content, the agent stays limited to retrieval.
- **Credential handling:** The Erskine May API is public, so there is no credential to store; Jentic shapes the request and parses the response at execution time. No token ever enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
- **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'search parliamentary procedure' or 'look up an Erskine May rule', and Jentic returns the matching Erskine May operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs.

## FAQ

### Does the Erskine May API require authentication?

No. The API is public and open for research without authentication.

### Can I search the full text of Erskine May?

Yes. Use GET `/api/Search/ParagraphSearchResults/{searchTerm}` to search within paragraph content or GET `/api/Search/SectionSearchResults/{searchTerm}` to search section titles.

### How do I jump to a specific paragraph reference?

Use GET `/api/Search/Paragraph/{reference}` where reference is the paragraph number (e.g., '12.34') to retrieve the section containing that paragraph.

### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the UK Parliament Erskine May API?

Yes. Jentic One runs self-hosted, so your own rules decide which Erskine May operations the agent may call. Because the API carries its chapter and section identifiers in the URL path (`/api/Chapter/{chapterNumber}`, `/api/Section/{sectionId}`), you can pin the agent to the read-only content routes and the search lookups such as `/api/Search/SectionSearchResults/{searchTerm}` and `/api/IndexTerm/browse.` Since this is a public API with no credential to manage, the agent stays limited to retrieving parliamentary-practice content and cannot reach beyond what your configuration allows.