§ The Prime Minister (Mr. Tony Blair)I beg to move,
That this House records its appreciation of the great distinction with which the Right Honourable Betty Boothroyd has occupied the office of Speaker; congratulates her on the skilful manner in which she has upheld the authority and dignity of this House; appreciates the wisdom, good humour and skill with which she has presided over its affairs, which are universally admired both in this country and abroad; and accordingly expresses its warmest thanks to the Right Honourable Member for her many services to this House; and unites in wishing her a long and happy retirement.Madam Speaker, it is pleasure to be the first to speak to the motion and to address my remarks to you, confident that I am speaking for everyone in the Chamber. You have been a truly outstanding Speaker and you have greatly enhanced the reputation of your office. You have presided over the House with authority and impartiality and, not least, with warmth and humour. Your tenure of the speakership has been characterised above all by your transparent love of this place and all that it stands for. As you said on your election:
I have been a Member for nearly 20 years. For me, the Commons has never been just a career: it is my life.You repeated that to us this afternoon.Madam Speaker, you first came to the Commons more than 40 years ago as a secretary to a Member. In 1973, you were elected Member of Parliament for West Bromwich, West, and for more than a quarter of a century you have given exceptional service as a constituency Member also. Among those who will miss you most as you retire are your numerous friends in the black country.
When elected Speaker, quite characteristically you said at the time:
I realise the weight of responsibility. It is something more massive, more demanding than anything that I have known before.It is, indeed, one of the toughest jobs in politics, and historically one not without risk. You, Madam Speaker, are the 155th occupant of the Chair. Some of your predecessors faced severe problems. During the reign of Henry VI, four Speakers were lost in the 10 years between 1461 and 1471. Two were beheaded, one was imprisoned and one was killed at the battle of Tewkesbury. That puts the problems of handling my hon. Friend the Member for Bolsover (Mr. Skinner) into proper perspective.Your judgments, made as they so often have to be, instantaneously—I believe that I speak for everyone—have been unerringly sound and fair. You can calm the House when it is angry and defuse it when it is tense. We all fear your knack of the legendary stifled yawn, which has been one of the most effective ways of bringing Members to a close.
Above all, however, you are a passionate parliamentarian. You are also—this has been another key to your success—a passionate Back Bencher. I know that there was one short aberration. For a few months between 1974 and 1975 you were an assistant Government Whip. I understand that, greatly to your credit, you were never entirely comfortable in that role.
In your acceptance speech on 27 April 1992, you summed up your feelings like this:
I have been a Deputy Speaker, but always at heart I have been a Back Bencher, and…I have never sought, and I have never expected, to occupy one of the great offices of Government.—[Official Report, 27 April 1992; Vol. 207, c. 15.]1117 You may never have held one of the great offices of Government, but you have held and enriched the greatest office in Parliament.Your decision to step down, Madam Speaker, was one of the best-kept secrets in politics. The clapping at that time and today may have been out of order, and there will have been part of you, with your strong sense of the traditions of this place, that perhaps felt disapproval. However, you will know, then and today, that it was a spontaneous expression of the House's deep affection for you.
It is not only people in this country who are going to miss you. You will be missed by people in many countries of the world. You have been a great ambassador for this Parliament and a passionate supporter of the Commonwealth. As we know, Prime Minister's Question Time is broadcast in many other countries, and while the performance of individual Members is not always greeted with acclamation, you receive rave reviews and, I am told, sackfuls of fan mail. You must let me into the secret.
You have spoken for the House on many historic occasions. I think for many of us the most memorable and moving was seeing you walk down the steps of Westminster Hall hand in hand with Nelson Mandela on his first official visit here as South Africa's President.
The role of Speaker, as you know better than us, can be a lonely one. You were always, by nature, a gregarious Back Bencher, enjoying the companionship of the Commons. But while maintaining the dignity of your office, you have never seemed remote, either to Members or to members of the public.
The House will miss you greatly. We would have liked you to continue. It is your decision, not ours that "time's up." But I am very mindful of your strict instruction to us a fortnight ago that we must be happy for you. Well, we are. Have a long and happy retirement. And do so in the certain knowledge that your great affection and respect for the House is reciprocated in the great affection and respect that the House feels for you.
§ Mr. William Hague (Richmond, Yorks)It is an enormous pleasure on this occasion to support every word that the Prime Minister said and wholeheartedly to endorse the motion in his name.
For all of us, Madam Speaker, your retirement will mark the end of an era. Ever since I was elected to the House in 1989, you have occupied the Chair, first as Deputy Speaker, then as Speaker since 1992. For me and many other hon. Members, it is hard to imagine the Chamber without you sitting in that Chair.
Your election to the speakership was, of course, historic. After 700 years and 154 Speakers, the House finally elected a woman to take the Chair. I trust that the House will not take it as anything more than a general comment when I express my hope that you will be the first in a long line of distinguished Madam Speakers.
One of the reasons for that is that your speakership has been an outstanding success, as the Prime Minister said. That is true of the way in which you have conducted the day-to-day business of the House, and of the standing in which Parliament is held throughout the world. You have been a truly magnificent ambassador for the House in international gatherings and in welcoming distinguished visitors here.
1118 In your eight years as Speaker, you have become a national and international figure, with your inimitable call to order instantly recognisable around the world—augmented in pitch by a packet of cigarettes every day. While the televising of our proceedings has no doubt been a major factor in your worldwide profile—coverage of Prime Minister's questions has turned you into a cult figure in the United States—it is also in no small part due to the authority and unique personality that you have stamped on the Chamber.
You have governed the House with exemplary courtesy, charm and, when necessary, a little firmness, on one occasion even turning off the microphone of my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Miss Widdecombe) in full flow—not something that many of us would ever dare to do. Ministers prone to long-winded replies and even long-winded questioners have been subjected to a well executed and exaggerated yawn, which it turns out even the Prime Minister has noticed.
Much of the success of your job depends not just on knowledge of procedure and close attention to the minute details of Commons rules, but to the wise interpretation of those rules. As one of your distinguished predecessors, Mr. Speaker Lowther, said:
The office of Speaker does not demand rare qualities. It demands common qualities in rare degree.In carrying out your duties in the House, you have more than lived up to that criterion, and you have always been a source of wise counsel for a young Back Bencher or a seasoned Minister.Defending the best traditions of the House is rightly one of the characteristics of your speakership for which you will be most remembered. You reaffirmed that in your statement today. You have been a redoubtable champion of the rights of Back Benchers of whatever party to hold Ministers to account, and in an age of spin doctors and soundbites, you have been insistent in calling on Ministers to make their policy announcements in the House. At a time when, to many, Parliament has appeared increasingly marginalised, you have done more than anyone to try to reassert its central role in our democracy and to resist its downgrading.
It has been said before that the position of Speaker in the House can be a lonely one. You are by tradition cut off from your previous party affiliations and the occasional refuge of the Tea Room, the Smoking Room and even the Bar, but you have been anything but cut off from the House and its Members. That has been true in your dealings with Members conducting parliamentary business, and it has also been evident in the magnificent hospitality that you have shown to Members and the innumerable charities and outside organisations which have been entertained in Speaker's House over the past eight years.
You said again today that for you the Commons had never been just a career—it was your life. After nearly 20 years as a Back Bencher and nearly eight years as our Speaker, nobody can doubt that. However, even that should not obscure the work that you have done outside the House with charities, your constituents in West Bromwich, West and in your position as chancellor of the Open university, which I know means so much to you.
Now you have an opportunity to have a life once more outside the Chamber, some of it, we hope, not too far away, but you will also be able to concentrate more time 1119 on one or two of your other great loves—visiting exotic places, and even hang-gliding when you get there. As we wish you a successful, long and happy retirement, you leave us in the sure knowledge that you have made an historic contribution to the House of Commons, and with our profoundest admiration and respect.
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§ Mr. Charles Kennedy (Ross, Skye and Inverness, West)It is sometimes remarked about the cockpit that is the House of Commons that instinctive all-party agreement usually means that the wrong decision will be reached. However, I think that the instinctive all-party agreement with which the House of Commons happily subscribes to the motion moved by the Prime Minister is a rare and telling example of hon. Members being collectively sincere and correct. I am very happy to associate myself and my party with the remarks of the Prime Minister and the leader of the Conservative party.
As has been said, Madam Speaker, you are the 155th Speaker of the House of Commons, but the first woman to occupy that historic post. All of us in politics who want there to be more women in this Chamber, either in the Chair or elsewhere, can look to you as a source of inspiration when it comes to the success of women in politics. However, there is a need for further success for women in politics in general.
Unlike some of your predecessors, you have never lost your head, either physically or metaphorically. You have presided over our daily dealings in this Chamber with charm and dignity, and also with the authority that all hon. Members require. I have acquired new responsibilities this Session, and I know that I speak for my predecessor as leader of the Liberal Democrat party, my right hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Paddy Ashdown), when I say that you have been a constant source of private advice and encouragement. I address you as Madam Speaker, and you call me "love"—which is a lot more affectionate than what I sometimes get called by my hon. Friends. You and I have even been known to share a fag together, and such memories are very welcome.
You were determined to become a Member of Parliament, Madam Speaker. You had to try five times to get elected to this place, but you made a sensational success of your parliamentary career when you got here. That tenacity is something that hon. Members of all parties can readily acknowledge.
The distinguished parliamentary commentator Norman Shrapnel once observed that too much silence in the Chamber was probably more ominous in a parliamentary democracy than too much noise. Sometimes we are too noisy, but let us never be silent. A good House of Commons should do its job, and that is what you have done, Madam Speaker. Many salutes—we wish you well
§ Mr. David Trimble (Upper Bann)It is a great pleasure, Madam Speaker, to endorse the motion moved by the Prime Minister, to which the leaders of the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague) and the right hon. Member for Ross, Skye and Inverness, West 1120 (Mr. Kennedy), have spoken. I entirely endorse everything that they have said, as do all my Ulster Unionist colleagues.
My party is one of the smallest in the House. My hon. Friends and I depend on the Chair to help us to contribute to the workings of the House. I want to extend to you, Madam Speaker, our appreciation of what you, and the Deputy Speakers, have done during your speakership to defend the traditions of the House and the position of the smaller parties.
In your comments, Madam Speaker, you invited us to pass judgment on the way in which you have discharged your role. The best judgment that I can make—and I am sure that I speak for all hon. Members in the House—is that I know that we did the right thing when we elected you in 1992. The statement that you made earlier confirms me in that knowledge. You reasserted the core functions of the House, which are to hold the Executive to account and to scrutinise legislation.
I would like to express in particular my appreciation of what you have said this afternoon, Madam Speaker. It is a very timely reminder to all of us of what we are primarily here for. You are quite right to say that, in some sections of public opinion, there is a degree of scepticism or cynicism about politics in general and the operations of this House. If anything, that cynicism has increased in recent years—perhaps inevitably, in a House with such a huge Government majority.
It is very important to reassert, as you have done, our primary function in terms of holding the Government to account and scrutinising legislation, and also to emphasise our need of the time to do that on the Floor of the House. It has been, I think, a retrograde step in recent years—indeed, in recent weeks—that time for debate and consideration has been curtailed so often. I hope that right hon. and hon. Members will reflect on the very wise words that you have uttered this afternoon.
Madam Speaker, you are, of course, the servant of the House, and you have been a magnificent servant of the House. You have also enhanced the standing of the House in the eyes of the public, not just here in the United Kingdom but elsewhere. We owe you a very great debt of gratitude, which I wish to express to you. I also wish you all the best on your retirement—I am sure that you will find many useful things to do in its service in various forms in the future.
§ Sir Edward Heath (Old Bexley and Sidcup)Madam Speaker, I had the privilege of occupying the Chair for the first time when you were elected Speaker. This provided me with certain problems, because I felt that it would quite wrong of me to exercise any judgment or express any views whatever on the election, lest all my colleagues here might think that I was trying to influence the outcome.
I find myself in a rather similar position once again in regard to the election of your successor in some three months' time. I propose to adopt the same attitude. It is not for me, in any way, to try to influence opinion. However, last night I signed a letter, which covers all the basics of the election of the Speaker and is being circulated to all Members of the House. They can form their own judgments on it and decide how they will react to it. I shall only add that, to any who wish to make 1121 inquiries about it, I shall be available over the next three months—in some part of the world or other—[Laughter.] I will gladly answer inquiries—provided, of course, that hon. Members pay the telephone charges.
You, Madam Speaker, have occupied the Chair during two quite distinct periods of British politics. First, you were Speaker for a Government on the decline who had been in office for 18 years. Secondly, you were in office for a new Government of a different party, with one of the largest majorities in history. Looking back over it, I cannot recall any incident in which your conduct or comments aroused any real differences within this Chamber. That is probably the most remarkable thing of all in the years I have been in the House—now more than 50—and on that, I congratulate you most sincerely.
It was all summed up in the last words of your introductory speech, when you said:
I now have to offer myself as the voice of the House—sensitive to the concerns of every Member, aware of the supreme duty of the Speaker to safeguard the rights of this House…—[Official Report, 27 April 1992; Vol. 207, c. 16.]If I may say so, Madam Speaker, you have lived up to that standard to the greatest possible degree. I would like to express my personal admiration for you and for all you have done, and to thank you from the depths of my heart.
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§ Mr. Peter Snape (West Bromwich, East)Madam Speaker, the respect and affection in which you are held by all hon. Members is reflected in the shock that we felt when we heard your first announcement two weeks ago. There was genuine sorrow on both sides of the House that you should make, inevitably, the decision that you did, but that shock and sorrow are reflected in the constituency that you have represented with such distinction for so many years, and equally in my constituency, in the black country and in the west midlands generally.
My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister reminded the House that, Madam Speaker, you were first elected at a by-election in 1973. For eight months or so, you represented constituents, who, in that short period, came into the new West Bromwich, East constituency—others went into the constituency of the Minister of State, Department of Social Security, my right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Perry Barr (Mr. Rooker). It says something for the impression that you made in those nine short months that, 26 and a half years later, many of my constituents still think that you represent them—
§ Madam SpeakerAnd still write to me.
§ Mr. SnapeI suspect that at least half of them wish you still did represent them.
If I may, Madam Speaker, I shall detain the House for a few moments with a couple of stories about the many years that you and I have served together, representing the borough of West Bromwich. We were elected in February 1974, and the old stagers among us will remember that it was pretty grim winter, but I shall avoid the political reasons behind that; I speak purely of the weather. You may remember, Madam Speaker, that when the results were declared, the then town clerk—that is what they were called in those days, with a salary to match—marched us through the back door of the Gala baths, past the empty dustbins and the stray cats in the town hall 1122 yard, through the back door of the town hall and down the empty corridors at 1.40 in the morning, and then proceeded to read out the results to an empty and snow-swept high street. I remember that, when we at last found some licensed premises, within the hour, you said, "Snapey, there will be some changes around here." [Laughter.] Sure enough, there have been some changes.
On another occasion, we decided, perhaps unwisely, to attend the West Bromwich carnival, sharing a pony and trap. It was a very small trap and a rather small pony, and in those politically incorrect days, Madam Speaker, you and I had not achieved the slim and sylph-like figures that we possess today. Half way down the high street, the shafts broke; the pony departed; and we were left with our legs in the air, facing the sky. "Now then, Snapey", you said, "you reckon to be a transport expert—get us out of this one." I am afraid, Madam Speaker, that I failed as miserably then as I have in other matters since.
The way in which you have represented the boroughs of West Bromwich and Sandwell and the Black Country as a whole has endeared you enormously to the people there, Madam Speaker. Their views were perhaps best reflected in the article written following your original statement by our good friend, Ken Tudor, in our local paper, the Express and Star. He said:
Over the years I have watched her battle for constituents, reminding officials they worked for the people and that everyone deserved respect.In those moods she is a formidable woman, her manicured and expertly varnished fingers fencing in front of her as she puts her points over. Betty in that mood is the match for anyone, and always has the last word.Well, I can say, with the benefit of having worked alongside you for 27 and a half years, that we have never had a cross word, largely because, like most males in such circumstances, I have never dared answer you back.It has been an enormous privilege for me to work alongside you during these years, and on behalf of your colleagues in the west midlands group of Labour Members, dating from your time when you were a member of that group, and your constituents—and mine, too—in West Bromwich, Wednesbury, Oldbury, Tividale, Tipton and Blackheath, I would wish you to know how much you are loved and respected by all of them. No matter what honours are rightly heaped upon you in the years to come, among your parliamentary colleagues and your constituents across the Black Country, you will always be known as "Our Betty."
Mr. Tony Senn (Chesterfield)One of the things of which I am proudest is that, way back in the 1960s, I came to support you, Madam Speaker, when you stood for Parliament. Forty years ago, of course, I did not realise that you would be the Speaker of the House.
I shall take up one point that you made in your statement: you have brought happiness to the House, and that has been reflected in how the House responded to your statement and among the many of us who have enjoyed your hospitality. I do not know whether this is true, but the story goes that the Father of the House made it possible for you to have a piano in the Speaker's House. If that is so, he brought his musical talents to bear in such a way as to make your evening parties more enjoyable.
You are the eighth Speaker under whom I have sat, and I can think of none who has had to cope with such massive changes. The Scottish Parliament, the Welsh 1123 Assembly, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Mayor of London are all represented in the House, and we have also had to deal with Members of the European Parliament and the growth of the media. You have turned your mind to the constitutional changes that we need. As we move more and more towards a presidential system of government, you have asserted yourself as the Speaker of the House of Representatives. There is a difference, as you have said, between an executive and a representative body.
In addition, Madam Speaker, you have interpreted democracy not in terms of directives from above and discipline, but in terms of the debate, diversity, disagreement and decision that are the mainspring of a democratic Parliament. You have also represented us brilliantly abroad.
You said, Madam Speaker, that you would not call us to order during this debate, so I shall break all the rules of "Erskine May" and the House by saying what I know we all want to say—"Goodbye, Betty, and thank you for all that you have done."
§ Mr. John MacGregor (South Norfolk)Madam Speaker, as a former Leader of the House and as the Member who seconded your nomination for the speakership, I want to add just a few words of my own. I can do so briefly because I agree with all the sentiments expressed so far.
We all had high expectations of you when you became Speaker, and you have far more than fulfilled them. You have shown a great mastery over the House, with appropriate firmness and with your sense of humour, tact and a twinkle in your eye whenever appropriate. I should like to comment on two of the points that you made earlier, which are important to you and to us.
First, the supremacy of Parliament is not just about statements being made here rather than on the "Today" programme. The issue goes much deeper than that. As a Minister in various Departments, I constantly found myself reminding officials that every policy had to be tested in Parliament, and that Parliament came first. I had also to remind them that I had a constituency responsibility that was also a high priority. You, Madam Speaker, have constantly reasserted the supremacy of Parliament.
Secondly, as the right hon. Member for Chesterfield (Mr. Benn) said, you have maintained our traditions superbly at a time of great change. Above all, you have recognised the realities of this place. We are not good at scrutinising various aspects of the Executive, particularly when it comes to secondary legislation. We must recognise that that means long hours and a heavy responsibility. I am grateful for the way in which you have always stressed those points.
Finally, reference has been made to the hospitality that you have shown to many of us and our spouses and families. We are all deeply grateful for it. On the many occasions on which my wife and I have hugely enjoyed that hospitality, you have demonstrated that you are a superb impresario, a great controller of events and a magnificent mistress of ceremonies. Bearing in mind the period when you trod the boards, I can also say that you 1124 are still a pretty impressive performer when you go before an audience. You have shown those qualities both in your hospitality and in this Chamber.
I thank you personally for all that you have done and I wish you well in what I am sure will be not a retirement but a long, happy and fulfilling life to come.
§ Mr. Clive Soley (Ealing, Acton and Shepherd's Bush)When you took the Chair in this great democratic Chamber, Madam Speaker, you made history, but I know better than most that you would not have been content to make it simply by being the first woman Speaker, important though that is. You wanted to—and did—stamp your authority and personality on this Chamber and you have done so in a way to which many hon. Members have referred in this short debate. I echo all their comments.
I must also say something about time and chance in political careers. Much has been said about your earlier life, of which I know little and will therefore say less, but one aspect of it was drawn to my attention today by a rather sad event. I heard of the funeral of Ken Lornas, who was the Member of Parliament for Huddersfield, West. I think that he beat you by a fairly small margin to be selected as the Labour candidate for that seat in 1962. But for time and chance, which affect what happens in our lives, we might never have had Madam Speaker and we would all have been the losers.
Recently, we have not always seen eye to eye on some aspects of the modernisation of the House—I have heard comments this afternoon about its importance. Throughout, you have held firm about the importance of defending Back Benchers' rights and of remembering that we are all here to represent the people who put us here. That is important.
I think that we all came to this House to make history, not merely to relive it. In doing so, we need to change. This House and some of its greatest Speakers have produced change and there has always been anxiety, stress and concern about whether the change is going in the right direction. My view is that the modernisation is, and that we need to improve the quality of the way in which we use time here, rather than focus on the quantity of that time. I think that we will do that.
What you have left me with in that debate, Madam Speaker, is the idea that we must ensure that we do not lose sight of the importance of the Back Bencher. You and all those who have gone before you have kept that firmly in their thoughts and I hope that all those who come after you will also do so. If we modernise the House with that thought in mind, we will succeed. We will look back and see areas where we have got it right and somewhere we have got it wrong, but we will know that we have continued to develop the proud traditions of democracy in this House. For all of that, thank you very much, Madam Speaker, and I also wish you a very happy retirement.
§ Mrs. Gwyneth Dunwoody (Crewe and Nantwich)Madam Speaker, when I was offered the opportunity to propose you—not once, I am happy to say, but twice—as the occupant of the Chair, I realised that it was a most exciting and wonderful day. Today shows that everyone not only acknowledges that you have been a unique 1125 Speaker, but that you have been a very special one. I do not mean that that is because you were the first woman Speaker; it is because you have brought to the office a quality of great humanity. You understand that this mixed body of men and women—who are all different and who all, on occasions, have pointed interests—are bound together by their commitment to the democratic system and their desire to represent what is good, what is best and what is important for their constituents.
We have heard of the many virtues that you have displayed and we all know about those. For me, the most important things have been your intelligence, your ability to listen to everyone from every part of the House and to bind us all together on that occasion when that was tremendously important, and above all, the fact that you have increasingly created a special role for the United Kingdom. You have done that.
I do not know whether you understand quite how unique you are within our politics. The voters see you as the representative of all that is good. Sometimes, they love it when you shout at Members, or when you represent with jokes the important aspects of our work. Above all, what they like about you is that they identify with you and feel that you are, indeed, "Our Betty".
I shall highlight one or two personal memories that are important to me. You and I have had some good old battles on various matters. However, when you leave the Speaker's House, for me there will not merely be sadness at your leaving official office, because of all the work that you have done in that capacity, but at the loss of certain very personal qualities. I think of the person who had worked here for 35 years but had not set foot in the Speaker's House, who stood alongside me at one of your parties and said, "This is the proudest day of my life." That kind of commitment and the understanding that we all have a piece of you is tremendously important.
Madam Speaker, if I were to be honest, the great state occasions when your natural dignity has incredibly enhanced the role of Speaker, have been significant. Certainly, seeing you walk down the stairs with Nelson Mandela is a memory that will stick in my mind for ever—[HON. MEMBERS: "Hear, hear."]. I also have personal memories, and I hope that you will forgive me if I highlight them. One is of you hanging out of a window at Speaker's House on the eve of the millennium, shouting "Happy new year" to everyone and getting a roar of recognition such as I have never heard in my life. For me, that was marvellous.
I do not need to tell you that you will be missed, Madam Speaker. You have presided over very real changes and, because you care about Back Benchers, you have been prepared to encourage experiments such as the extension of debate to Westminster Hall, changes in our hours and differences in the ways in which we operate. However, you were prepared to talk to everybody about what that would mean and how it should be carried forward.
I know that you will have a wonderful time, Madam Speaker. If I have one slight disagreement with you today, it is this. Many things will happen to you, you have a lot to do and many places to go to, but I simply do not believe that your dancing days are over.
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§ Mr. Peter Brooke (Cities of London and Westminster)Madam Speaker, there are myriad reasons why the memories of your speakership will live on in the minds of those of us who have been lucky enough to serve in this House during your remarkable tenure of office.
Madam Speaker, events outside the Chamber, such as your doing the Lambeth Walk in your apartments will be remembered for ever by those of us who were there. Of course, the mainsprings of memory are events in the Chamber, membership of which confers on you the authority that you exercise so notably on our behalf and much to our, and Parliament's, advantage. One afternoon in April 1992, I congratulated you and said that I would seek to remain within the bounds of order. You have richly rewarded me wholly beyond my desserts, however poor my self-discipline.
All of us view you from subjective perspectives but, on everyone's behalf, your speakership has been distinguished, robust, warm, direct, colourful, candid and kind. I have particular reason to know how fortunate I have been to serve in the Chamber in the last eight and a half years, and I am delighted that you have clearly enjoyed that time every bit as much. Thank you, Madam Speaker; I support the Prime Minister's motion.
§ Mr. David Marshall (Glasgow, Shettleston)Madam Speaker, for more than eight years, since April 1992, you have been the honorary president of the British group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which has over 1,200 members from both Houses of Parliament, including associate members.
In the past six years, as vice-chairman and then chairman, I have had the pleasure and privilege of working with you on IPU matters, Madam Speaker. You have supported strongly the aims and values of the IPU and you have given a great deal of your time to our work, as well as taking great interest in it. You have presided over our annual general meetings, taken an active role in the selection of delegations to other countries and entertained many of the numerous parliamentarians from other IPU member countries who visit this country. You have done all of that with tremendous enthusiasm and great good humour.
Madam Speaker, you are the best known Speaker in the world, and at all of the IPU international conferences—which you, of course, cannot attend—many parliamentarians from the 139 member nations ask after you kindly and express their admiration for you. It is therefore appropriate that one of your last acts as Speaker of the House will be to represent the mother of Parliaments at the special IPU millennium conference of Presiding Officers of national Parliaments which will be held in the United Nations building in New York at the end of August and in which you will play a major role.
Madam Speaker, I very much regret the fact that you will not now preside over our AGM in the autumn, when I will stand down as chairman, having completed my three years in office. I therefore wish to take this opportunity to say a big thank you from all the members of the IPU for all your unstinting efforts on our behalf.
1127 Two weeks ago, when you announced your intention to relinquish the position of Speaker, you said to the House, "Be happy for me". I, for one, am very happy for you and I wish you most sincerely a long, happy and healthy retirement.
§ Mr. Dafydd Wigley (Caernarfon)As one who has also been bitten by the retirement bug, may I associate myself and my colleagues in Plaid Cymru with today's motion and the comments that have been made? I thank you, Madam Speaker, for the way in which you have handled the House with fairness to all parties, and acknowledge the way in which you have perhaps protected me from myself. During your time in the Chair, I have not been the recipient of a red card or been led to break the Speaker's Chair, which, regrettably, I cannot say for earlier periods.
You have presided over a period of significant constitutional change. You have had to deal with new institutions—the National Assembly for Wales; the Scottish Parliament; and changes in Northern Ireland—and the consequential effects that those have had on our procedures. "Erskine May" will rely heavily on the rulings that you made during that period.
When you were elected, you quoted Mr. Speaker Weatherill, who said that a Speaker has no friends. You will know by now that that just is not true. You will leave with the friendship of the whole House, and we wish you iechyd, hir oes a hapusrwydd—health, a long life and happiness—and many joyous memories of a job well done.
§ Mr. Eddie McGrady (South Down)The privilege and honour of speaking on behalf of my colleagues in the Social Democratic and Labour party falls to me. May I convey to you, Madam Speaker, the apologies for the absence of my leader, who is not well?
Those of us in the minor parties in the House owe you a great debt of gratitude for your tolerance, understanding and help, both personal and on a party basis. The years in which you have held office have been difficult for parliamentary representatives from Northern Ireland, because we have had a great distraction from the affairs of this House as a result of the events occurring in our constituencies. You, in particular, took great cognisance of, and interest in, those difficulties and made allowances for us when, over that period, we failed to appear in the House at appropriate times. For that, we are individually and collectively extremely grateful.
Other speakers this evening have eloquently expressed, on behalf of the minor parties, the great care that you always took to ensure that minority opinions were heard on both sides of the House. You added that essential dimension to the debates in this Chamber. We shall always remember that and we hope that it will be continued by your successor. The example that you have set will be difficult to follow, but the atmosphere that you have created in the House will no doubt continue in your absence.
On a personal basis, most of us have appreciated the entertainment in your chambers. Perhaps I should rephrase that: we have appreciated the delights of cultural 1128 activity and the gatherings for music, wining and dining. By that mechanism, you put each of us at ease when we came to the Floor of the House.
We are grateful for your end-of-term report, which you gave the House this evening and which we must all take on board, ponder and act upon in the coming years. You will have been pleased that, at what was perhaps your last performance in the House, you played to a full House. I had great difficulty in getting a seat, as there was standing room only. That is the ultimate tribute to any office or performance. Thank you very much for all that you have done for us. We wish you many happy years of retirement ad multos annos.
§ Rev. Ian Paisley (North Antrim)In the 30 years and more that I have been in the House, Madam Speaker, I have sat under various Speakers—that is, when I was permitted to sit under them, because some of them had me removed, as you did yourself.
I understand that when you fought your last election, you wore a green rosette. It was not the green of my friend, if I might call him that, the hon. Member for South Down (Mr. McGrady); it was the green of this House of Commons. Nevertheless, although you wore that green rosette for your election, you have dealt fairly with those who would rather have the orange.
At the beginning of my parliamentary career, I listened intently to the various Speakers of the House. Speaker King was a man of very distinguished character. Speaker Lloyd was a different character altogether. Perhaps he was distinguished in the Chair as being not distinguished at all. He was not a very distinguished Chairman, probably because he had been in the Cabinet too long, and I do not think that Cabinet Ministers make good Speakers.
Speakers Thomas and Weatherill were very distinguished, although different. People always asked who would follow the acts of Speakers Thomas and Weatherill, but you, Madam Speaker, have more than followed them, and you have today seen the unanimity that is in the House. It is not often that I can say a loud "Amen" to what the Prime Minister says, or even to what the Leader of the Opposition or the leader of the official Unionist party says—[Interruption.] We did walk together at one time.
You, Madam Speaker, gave the House at a difficult time in the politics of this United Kingdom a salutary example of what can be done by one parliamentarian, determined and dedicated to the task that was given to you. When you were elected I said that I could not have gone home if I had not voted for you, because I would have had to face the wrath of four Paisley ladies. I did not say that I was more afraid of the dog, who was also a female, because I might have been bitten on the calf, but I will say it today, and I am glad that my wife is present in the House for the occasion of your farewell.
Your unyielding determination to control the House and yet, as we would say in Ulster, give it its head, was amazing, and everyone here today admits that. I remember the day when I had a real tangle with you, Madam Speaker, and I was removed from the Chamber. At the end of the day. I actually walked out—I have been carried out from other places at various times—but out of respect to you I left the Chamber. The House did divide 1129 and some colleagues supported me. Their number went into two figures, which was a record, I am told, for those who are thrown out of the House.
You, Madam Speaker, have shown stamina of which all of us are jealous. You have kept up with the work load, presided in the House and carried out the many duties attached to your office while always looking well. You were always in tremendous form and you brought a sparkle to the audiences that you addressed. That put back into our public life the fact that Parliament can be interesting. It is a good thing that we all have a sense of humour and that we can all laugh at ourselves. It is a good thing that, in the basics of our calling, we have a dedication to democracy.
I, for one, would like to say that your stand was deeply appreciated in Northern Ireland when an attempt was made to alter the rules of membership of the House so that others should have certain offices. Those who follow my way of life in Northern Ireland admired your stand in defending the ancient rules of the House, saying that the House could not be bullied even by appeals to European courts, but stood on its own as the sovereign Parliament of this United Kingdom.
We salute you, Madam Speaker, today. We wish you well and we believe that there is much ahead of you which will bring much credit to the House, of which you were Speaker, and also to the country that we all love.
§ Mr. Nicholas Winterton (Macclesfield)Madam Speaker, you and I have one thing in common: we entered this splendid House, the mother of all Parliaments, at by-elections in the early 1970s. I remain firmly ensconced on the Back Benches; you have achieved the highest office that the House has to offer.
One or two hon. Members have reminisced about experiences in your company. I remember an occasion not so long ago when you were entertaining people in your wonderful apartments and you were let down by the pianist. You turned to several colleagues and asked, "Can you find me a pianist?" I fortunately knew of the proficiency on the piano of Sir Ivan Lawrence, who was then Member of Parliament for Burton. He fulfilled the role that was available that night. From then on, he became your in-House pianist.
I rise as the longest serving member of your Chairmen's Panel and as the current Chairman of the Procedure Committee. I salute you for the service that you have given the House in standing up for the authority and integrity of the Chamber of the House of Commons. Time and again, as Speaker, you have expressed your belief in the vital role of the Back Bencher. That is most valuable. It is too easy in a modern Parliament for the role of the Back Bencher to be underestimated and rendered irrelevant. Time and again, through your words and actions, you have shown the political parties and the Government of the day, of whatever party, that the House is about the role of the Back Bencher.
I salute you for the service that you have given as Speaker; it has been truly magnificent. I wish you the very best and happiest of retirements; it is well earned.
§ Mr. Donald Anderson (Swansea, East)We have now reached the stage in our tributes when almost everything that can be said has been said, but not everyone has said it. Politicians will always find an opportunity for saying a few more golden words.
I rise on behalf of the members of the United Kingdom branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association to say thank you, Madam Speaker, for all that you have done for us, and to tell the House about the esteem in which you are held throughout the Commonwealth and by all the many parliamentarians to whom you have given hospitality in what was described as your chambers. In every way, you have shown yourself to be a wonderful Commonwealth figure.
Even before the eight years of your speakership, you were a member of our executive and a joint honorary chairman of our group. During your speakership, you have always gone the extra mile in welcoming Commonwealth parliamentarians to our two main events—the March parliamentary seminar and the May visit. For many, the joyful welcome that you gave them was the highlight of their visit.
One of your last official functions—if not the last—will take place when we hold the millennium conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association here, in the mother of Parliaments, in September. The conference will be held in London and subsequently in Edinburgh. When you made your announcement on 12 July, I was a little afraid that you might not be with us. We were relieved and delighted that you will, as President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, preside at our functions, doubtless in the same happy way in which you have presided over the House.
On behalf of all Commonwealth parliamentarians, I repeat my thanks and wish you a very long and grand retirement.
§ Mrs. Margaret Ewing (Moray)I happily associate myself and my hon. Friends from the Scottish National party with the motion and, indeed, all the words of praise that have been heaped on you, Madam Speaker, this afternoon. I sincerely thank you for your courtesy, which has meant that you have made yourself available to us when we wished to discuss matters directly with you; for your discipline, which was sometimes directed severely towards these Benches; and for your humour, which has earned you the laughter and love of friends throughout the House.
When you were elected you had the support of all the parties in the House, which in itself was no mean achievement. It is a matter of courtesy to record that you have retained that support during your eight and a half year tenure of office. All those candidates who aspire to be your successor might bear that seriously in mind. From these Benches, we wish you everything that you would wish yourself in your retirement and hope that that retirement will not be too private. We do not see you taking up embroidery and knitting and hope that you will be very much in the public eye and very much involved in public life.
§ Mr. Peter L. Pike (Burnley)I feel that I should say a few words on your retirement, Madam Speaker. It will cause great sadness among television viewers, and the viewing figures for parliamentary programmes will fall. With all respect to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, I know that people such as my neighbour Mike Turnbull and millions of others in the country think that you are the No. 1 attraction in the House. They believe that you perform your role from the Chair with humour, dignity and a character that has endeared you to people way beyond the House, throughout the country and throughout the world who have watched our Parliament on television.
You will recall that I first met you at the Nelson and Colne by-election following the death of Sidney Silverman. I was a full-time party organiser running Bradley ward, one of the key wards in Nelson. It was evident from day one that we would not win because the tide was against us, but Paul Carmody, your agent, had us at the bus station delivering leaflets to shift workers at 5 o'clock in the morning and pushing leaflets through doors, making sure that your face was on the topside. We were not allowed to deliver the leaflets in any other way. In fact, we were given lessons.
Although the result was inevitable, your character and hard work kept the spirit of the workers alive throughout the campaign and they were willing to work right up to the last minute. On polling day, we had so many workers that I was not sure how we would be able to feed them all. Suddenly, a massive van arrived and four people carried out a potato pie. One of the Nelson party members was a master baker and we had the biggest potato pie that I have ever seen in my life.
At the West Bromwich by-election, you took the seat of Maurice Foley, who is perhaps best remembered for his role in the bombing of the wreck of the Torrey Canyon to try to get rid of its oil. In a quirk of fate, I took his council seat in Merton and Morden in 1962 when he resigned to try to get a parliamentary seat. Ultimately, he preceded you in West Bromwich.
You took the Chair as Deputy Speaker on 9 July 1987. On 10 July, when I was in the middle of a speech on industry, I looked up to see that you were in the Chair and, to this day, I remember asking what we should call you. You said, "Call me Madam." I am sure that you remember that that was not accepted for several weeks in the softback edition of Hansard, which continued to print "Mr. Deputy Speaker". However, the bound volumes are correct and you are called what you wanted to be called. 1132 From the moment you said "Call me Madam", you set your seal, and a few years later you became the Speaker of the House.
I thank you for the way in which you have performed your duties during the whole of that period, Madam Speaker. You have been a credit to the House and a credit to all of us. I wish you well on your retirement, and I hope that you enjoy the many years ahead of you.
§ Mr. Dennis Turner (Wolverhampton, South-East)Madam Speaker, it would be appropriate for the black country to have the last word. As a black country man and a man of few words, all I want to say to you is "yo've been a bosting good spayker." We love you. We think the world of you in the Black Country, as you know. We shall still be together, because you will not be far away from us. On behalf of the Catering Committee, we have bought you a lovely bunch of flowers, and they are outside the Chamber. Thank you for all the work that you have done. We hope that you continue to enjoy your fish, chips and mushy peas. God bless you.
Question put and agreed to.
Resolved,
That this House records its appreciation of the great distinction with which the Right Honourable Betty Boothroyd has occupied the office of Speaker; congratulates her on the skilful manner in which she has upheld the authority and dignity of this House; appreciates the wisdom, good humour and skill with which she has presided over its affairs, which are universally admired both in this country and abroad; and accordingly expresses its warmest thanks to the Right Honourable Member for her many services to this House; and unites in wishing her a long and happy retirement.
§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Sir Alan Haselhurst)May I say to the House on behalf of the three Deputy Speakers, who would otherwise be silent and who have worked closely with Madam Speaker during the past three years, that they wish to be associated with the sentiments that have been encapsulated in the motion passed by the House.