Election of Speaker

Malcolm Rifkind Excerpts

Tuesday 18th May 2010 Commons Chamber

[Sir Malcolm Rifkind (Kensington) (Con)]

I beg to move, That John Bercow do take the Chair of this House as Speaker.

First, Sir Peter, may I have the pleasure of congratulating you on your elevation to Father of the House? You first entered this Chamber in 1959, when Harold Macmillan was Prime Minister. Since then, you have established your reputation as a Member who speaks on matters with the greatest of clarity and with the deepest of passion; that has been your trademark. Indeed, it has been said that when Sir Peter Tapsell rises—[Laughter.] Ambiguity is always very dangerous. It has been said that when Sir Peter arises, he does so not to speak, but to intone superbly. We give you our affectionate congratulations on your position.

My purpose today is not to intone superbly or otherwise, but to recommend the right hon. Member for Buckingham. I am conscious that, as he has said, this is not an occasion for long speeches, and therefore I will emulate King Henry VIII, who is reputed to have said to each of his six wives, “Please don’t worry. I don’t intend to keep you long.”

The right hon. Gentleman was elected by secret ballot last June, and I must make a revelation: on that occasion, I did not vote for him. I voted for my right hon. Friend the Leader of the House, whom I congratulate on the position that he occupies today. The fact that I did not vote for the right hon. Member for Buckingham in a sense provided an opportunity, because I, like many others, have had the chance, with an open mind, to see him act as Speaker over the past 11 months, and I have been impressed.

I first entered this House in 1974, when Selwyn Lloyd was the Speaker, and I have seen six Speakers in operation. They all had very great strengths, and most of them had personal characteristics as well. I want, in the time available, to draw attention very briefly to three aspects that I think the House should consider in deciding whether the right hon. Gentleman should continue as Speaker.

First, one of the requirements is that the Speaker must be absolutely fair between individual Members. That goes without saying—it is standard to our procedures—and I do not think that anyone would dispute that the right hon. Gentleman has operated in that way.

The second requirement is, of course, that while a Speaker has great power and great authority, when the House is in turmoil or threatening to descend into turmoil, he must use his power not only with flexibility but, on occasion, with humour as well, in order to reduce the temperature that might otherwise rise. The greatest exponent of that was Speaker George Thomas, and I remember vividly one glorious evening when there was a real disruption in the House. A Scottish nationalist Member was speaking with a very strong Scottish accent and was speaking very fast, and some hon. Members from south of the border could not entirely follow what was being said. An English Labour Member got up on a point of order and said, “Mr Speaker, we English Members cannot understand a word that is being said. May we please have simultaneous translation?” There was immediate turmoil in the House and Speaker Thomas, known as one who spoke with a great Welsh lilt, said, “Order, order. There are many accents in this place. I sometimes wish I had one myself.” Immediately, the trauma was over. I believe that the right hon. Gentleman has those qualities, and has already shown them in abundance.

The third and final talent that is required is the recognition that the Speaker is of course the champion of the Back Benchers against not just those on the Government Front Bench but those on the Opposition Front Bench, too. I may say, having served on the Front Bench for more than 20 years, that I have come more to that point of view in recent years. It is crucial. Of course, the Speaker was originally the protector of this House against the Crown, but the threat today is not so much from the Crown and Her Majesty but from Her Majesty’s Government and Her Majesty’s Opposition. I believe that the right hon. Gentleman has already shown himself to be splendidly robust at intervening on both Prime Ministers and Leaders of the Opposition if they are going on too long and interrupting the smooth business of the House.

One final point, Sir Peter, before I sit down. We have had in the past 11 months a modern Speaker for a modern age. The comment was made some months ago that perhaps he was too young to be on the Speaker’s Chair. I do not think that that argument can be used very easily now. He is, I understand, 47, which makes him four years older than both the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister and eight years older than the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The House can be reassured that if it chooses him today, we will have some experience and gravitas in the Speaker’s Chair. I commend him to the House.

Question put forthwith (Standing Order No. 1A), That John Bercow do take the Chair of this House as Speaker.

Question agreed to.

Sir Peter Tapsell left the Chair, and John Bercow was conducted to the Chair by Sir Malcolm Rifkind and Joan Walley.

Mr Speaker-Elect (standing on the upper step): Before I take the Chair as Speaker-Elect, I wish first to thank the House for the honour that it has again bestowed upon me. I am aware that it is the greatest honour it can give to any of its Members. I pray that I shall justify its continuing confidence and I propose to do all within my power to preserve and to cherish its best traditions.

The Speaker-Elect sat down in the Chair and the Mace was placed upon the Table.