How Parliament Works: a View From the Chair

The Right Honorable John Bercow, MP

Thursday 14 March 2019 @ 6.30pm

Peter Froggatt Centre, 0G.007

Queen’s University is delighted to welcome The Right Honorable John Bercow, MP, Speaker of the House of Commons, to deliver a public lecture at the University. The event will be hosted by Professor Richard English, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Internationalisation and Engagement, Queen’s University Belfast.

Speaker Biog:

John Bercow was unanimously re-elected to be Speaker of the House of Commons on 13 June 2017, having previously held the office since 2009. He is the longest serving incumbent of the post since the Second World War.

Known for his quick wit, John has sought to champion the rights of backbenchers, by granting more than 550 Urgent Questions from MPs – more than any other Speaker – to bring ministers to account on the pressing issues of the day.

As part of his commitment as Speaker to making Parliament more accessible, John has embarked on an extensive outreach programme, travelling across the country to visit schools, universities and community groups to talk about his role and that of Parliament.

He is a passionate supporter of LGBT rights – and has made concerted efforts to make Parliament more diverse and representative of the nation, with the appointment of the first Serjeant at Arms, Commons chaplain and senior lawyer from black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds (BAME).

He was one of the founders of the Speaker’s parliamentary placement scheme, giving young people a chance to shadow and work for MPs - and spearheaded the opening of a Parliamentary Education Centre, which is set to attract hundreds of thousands of school children over 10 years.

He was also the first Speaker to allow the UK Youth Parliament to debate in the House of Commons chamber - an annual event he also chairs.

A former national Chairman of the Federation of Conservative Students and London Borough Councillor, he was elected the Conservative Member of Parliament for Buckingham in May 1997, serving on the front benches as spokesman for Education & Employment and Home Affairs.

State educated, John graduated from the University of Essex with a first-class honours degree in Government in 1985.

In his spare time, John enjoys attending Arsenal home games as well as watching – and playing – tennis. In 2013, John’s book, Tennis Maestros: the twenty greatest male tennis players of all time, was published by Biteback Publishing.

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