Speaker of The British House of Commons - Role - Presiding Officer

Presiding Officer

The Speaker's primary function is to preside over the House of Commons. Traditionally, the Speaker when presiding wore court dress – a black coat with white shirt and bands, beneath a black gown, with stockings and buckled shoes, and a full-bottomed wig. In 1992, however, Betty Boothroyd as the first female Speaker eschewed the wig. Her successor, Michael Martin, also declined to wear the wig; moreover, he chose to simplify other aspects of the uniform, doing away with the once customary buckled court shoes and silk stockings. His successor John Bercow abandoned traditional dress, wearing a plain black gown over his lounge suit when presiding. For ceremonial occasions such as the State Opening, the Speaker wears a black and gold robe with a train; previously, this was worn over court dress with a white waterfall cravat, but the present Speaker wears plain morning dress.

Whilst presiding, the Speaker sits in a chair at the front of the House. Traditionally, members supporting the Government sit on his or her right, and those supporting the Opposition on his or her left. The Speaker's powers are extensive, and are much more extensive than those of his or her Lords counterpart, the Lord Speaker. Most importantly, the Speaker calls on members to speak; no member may make a speech without the Speaker's prior permission. By custom, the Speaker alternates between members supporting the Government and supporting the Opposition. Members direct their speeches not to the whole House, but to the Speaker, using the words "Mister Speaker" or "Madam Speaker." Members must refer to each other in the third person by the title of their constituency or their ministerial titles (not their names); they may not directly address anyone other than the Speaker (who does call them by name). In order to maintain his or her impartiality, the Speaker generally refrains from making speeches, although there is nothing to prevent him or her from doing so. For example, on Wednesday 3 December 2008, Speaker Martin addressed the House on the subject of the arrest of Damian Green MP and the subsequent searching of his office within the precincts of the House of Commons.

During debate, the Speaker is responsible for maintaining discipline and order. He or she rules on all points of order (objections made by members asserting that a rule of the House has been broken); the decisions may not be appealed. The Speaker bases decisions on the rules of the House and on precedent; if necessary, he or she may consult with the Parliamentary Clerks before issuing a ruling. In addition, the Speaker has other powers that he may use to maintain orderly debate. Usually, the Speaker attempts to end a disruption, or "calls members to order," by repeating "Order! Order!" If members do not follow his or her instructions, the Speaker may punish them by demanding that they leave the House for the remainder of the day's sitting. For grave disobedience, the Speaker may "name" a member, by saying "I name ." (deliberately breaching the convention that members are only referred to by reference to their constituency, "The Honourable Member for "). The House may then vote to suspend the member "named" by the Speaker. In case of "grave disorder," the Speaker may immediately adjourn the entire sitting. This power has been invoked on several occasions since it was conferred in 1902.

In addition to maintaining discipline, the Speaker must ensure that debate proceeds smoothly. If the Speaker finds that a member is making irrelevant remarks, is tediously repetitive, or is otherwise attempting to delay proceedings, he or she may order the member to end the speech. Furthermore, before debate begins, the Speaker may invoke the "Short Speech" rule, under which he or she may set a time limit (at least eight minutes) which will apply to every speech. At the same time, however, the Speaker is charged with protecting the interests of the minority by ensuring sufficient debate before a vote. Thus, the Speaker may disallow a closure, which seeks to end debate and immediately put the question to a vote, if he or she finds that the motion constitutes an abuse of the rules or breaches the rights of the minority.

Before the House votes on any issue, the Speaker "puts the question"; that is, he or she orally states the motion on which the members are to vote. He or she then assesses the result of a voice vote, but any member may demand a division (a recorded vote). The Speaker may overrule a request for a division and maintain the original ruling; this power, however, is used only rarely, usually when members make frivolous requests for divisions in order to delay proceedings.

The Speaker does not vote in the division, except when the Ayes and Noes are tied, in which case he or she must use the casting vote. In exercising the casting vote, the Speaker may theoretically vote as he or she pleases, but, in practice, always votes in accordance with certain unwritten conventions, such as Speaker Denison's rule. Firstly, the Speaker votes to give the House further opportunity to debate a bill or motion before reaching a final decision. (For example, the Speaker would be obliged to vote against a closure motion.) Secondly, any final decision should be approved by the majority. (Thus, for instance, the Speaker would vote against the final passage of a bill.) Finally, the Speaker should vote to leave a bill or motion in its existing form; in other words, the Speaker would vote against an amendment.

Since the House of Commons is a very large body Speakers are rarely called upon to use the casting vote. Since 1801, there have been only 49 instances of tied divisions. The last tied votes were in 1980, when the House divided 201-201 on a motion to grant leave to bring the Televising of Parliament Bill (then-Speaker George Thomas voted Aye) and on 21 June 1990, 197–197 on an amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill (the Deputy Speaker voted No). There was believed to be a 317–317 vote on an amendment to a motion concerning the Maastricht Treaty in 1993, but it was quickly discovered that one extra "Aye" vote had been erroneously counted. Prior to the counting error having been noted, Speaker Betty Boothroyd did give a Casting Vote of No, although this was later expunged when the error became clear.