Speaker’s Statement
Debate between Rob Butler and Liam Fox
Dr Liam Fox (North Somerset) (Con)
Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. Cheryl and I entered the House on the same day in 1992, delighted and a little surprised to find ourselves on the Government side following that election. The Conservative party has lost a loyal, hard-working and mainstream advocate, the likes of whom we see too seldom these days. Parliament has lost a great defender of our values and traditions, someone who worked tirelessly across party lines to make our democracy work better for everyone. We MPs on both sides of the House have lost an almost unnaturally good-natured, kind and generous friend. Her charm could lure Front Benchers into a very false sense of security, which they seldom fell for twice, and her bravery in the face of a long and difficult illness is truly an inspiration to all of us.
If the importance of public service is judged by independence of mind and sound judgment, if the success of public service is measured by the level of respect in which any MP is held by their constituents, and if the value of public service is reflected in the esteem in which any of us is held by our parliamentary peers, with Cheryl’s untimely death we have truly lost a great public servant. She will be enormously missed and even harder to replace.
Rob Butler (Aylesbury) (Con)
Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. I am a new Member of this place, but even in my very brief time in politics, Dame Cheryl had a profound impact on me. I first met her when she came to Aylesbury to help me campaign from her neighbouring constituency. We had HS2 in common. With her was her much loved dog, Jimmy, who brought her so much joy after the loss of her husband.
Cheryl walked the streets with me, she shared a choice comment or two with a heckler in the post office, and then she sat down with me in a pub to tell me what was what. Despite having known me for barely an hour, she offered me space in her office were I to be elected. She was as good as her word: in my first month here, I camped out alongside her, benefiting not just from a desk and some space, but from her wisdom. I vividly remember when she heard me discussing a proposed email in response to a particularly vitriolic correspondent. She came and stood quietly behind me and said, “I think you could just say, ‘I remember meeting you very well.’ He will get the message.” She was, of course, right. I did not hear from him again.
Dame Cheryl gave me and many of the 2019 intake valuable tips that have already stood us in excellent stead. She was always willing to give her time, and even so many years after coming to this place herself, she was willing to share the benefit of her long experience with us. We newbies will miss her too.
Dame Cheryl cared. She cared profoundly for her constituents, she cared for fellow Members of this House, and she cared greatly for her staff, and they cared greatly for her. It is my honour to have been asked to work with them in the coming weeks. Thanks to your kindness, Mr Speaker, three of Dame Cheryl’s staff sit today in the Public Gallery. They are all of course desperately sad at the loss of not just their boss, but a great friend and mentor. They know how much of an impression Dame Cheryl made on everybody with whom she came into contact, and they have expressed to me their gratitude for being able to be here to hear your words and those of other right hon. and hon. Members in tribute to Dame Cheryl’s extraordinary service to Chesham and Amersham, the entire county of Buckinghamshire, her party and her country.