In the
United Kingdom, the 'State Opening of Parliament' is an annual event held usually in October or November that marks the commencement of a session of
Parliament. It is held in the
House of Lords Chamber after Parliament first assembles in consequence of a
General Election and each autumn thereafter.
The current Sovereign,
Queen Elizabeth II, has opened every session of the Westminster Parliament since her accession except in 1959 and 1963, when she was pregnant with
Prince Andrew and
Prince Edward, respectively, her two older children were born during the reign of her father,
King George VI. These two sessions were opened by
Lords Commissioners, headed by
Geoffrey Fisher, the
Archbishop of Canterbury, empowered by Her Majesty.
Preparation
The State Opening is a lavish ceremony. First, the cellars of the
Palace of Westminster are searched in order to prevent a modern-day
Gunpowder Plot. The Plot of 1605 involved a failed attempt by English
Catholics to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill the
Protestant King James I and aristocracy. Since that year, the cellars have been searched, but for the sake of form only.
Before the monarch departs her residence, the Crown takes a member of the House of Commons to
Buckingham Palace as a ceremonial hostage. This is to guarantee the safety of the Sovereign as she enters a possibly hostile Parliament. Today, with the convention that the majority of the government is drawn from the Commons, the symbolism becomes rather confused - the chosen hostage is usually the
Vice-Chamberlain of the Household who, being a member of Her Majesty's Government, it can be assumed would not be hostile. The hostage is released upon the safe return of the Queen.
Before the arrival of the sovereign the
Imperial State Crown is carried to the palace of Westminster in its own state coach. From the Victoria tower the crown is passed by the Queen's bargemaster to the comptroller of the
Lord Chamberlain's office. It is then carried, along with the sword of state and the
Cap of Maintenance, to be displayed in the royal gallery.
Arrival of the Sovereign
The Queen arrives at the
Palace of Westminster in a horse-drawn coach, entering through
Sovereign's Entrance under the
Victoria Tower. As the building is a royal palace, the
Royal Standard is hoisted to replace the
Union Flag upon the sovereign's entrance and remains whilst she is in attendance. Then, after she takes on the Robes of State and the
Imperial State Crown in the Robing Chamber, the Queen processes through the royal gallery, usually accompanied by the
Duke of Edinburgh, to the House of Lords. The ceremony is traditionally held in the Lords Chamber rather than in the Commons Chamber due to a custom initiated in the
seventeenth century. In 1642,
King Charles I entered the Commons Chamber and attempted to arrest five members. The Speaker famously defied the King, refusing to inform him as to where the members were hiding. Ever since that incident, no monarch has entered the House of Commons.
Once on the Throne, the Queen, wearing the Imperial State Crown, instructs the house by saying, "My Lords, pray be seated", she then motions the
Lord Great Chamberlain to summon the House of Commons.
Summoning of the Commons
The Lord Great Chamberlain raises his wand of office to signal to the
Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, who has been waiting in the
central lobby. Black Rod turns and, under the escort of the doorkeeper of the House of Lords and an
inspector of police, approaches the doors to the chamber of the Commons. The doors are slammed in his face – symbolizing the right of the Commons to debate without the presence of the Queen's representative. He then strikes three times with his staff (the Black Rod), and is then admitted. At the bar, Black Rod bows to the speaker before proceeding to the despatch boxes and issuing the command of the monarch that the Commons attend, in the following formula:
"Mr/Madam Speaker, The Queen commands this honourable House to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers."
The Speaker proceeds to attend the summons at once. The Sergeant-at-Arms picks up the
ceremonial mace and, with the Speaker, leads the Members of the House of Commons as they walk, in pairs, towards the House of Lords. By custom, the members saunter, with much discussion and joking, rather than formally process. The
Prime Minister and the
Leader of the Opposition usually walk side by side, leading the two lines of MPs. The Commons then arrive at the Bar of the House of Lords (no person who is not a member of the Upper House may pass the Bar unbidden when it is in session; a similar rule applies to the Commons), where they bow to The Queen. They remain at the Bar for the speech.
Delivery of the speech
The Queen reads a prepared speech, known as the '
Speech from the Throne' or the 'Queen's Speech', outlining her Government's agenda for the coming year. The speech is not written by the Queen, but rather by the
Cabinet, and reflects the legislative agenda they wish to pursue with the agreement of the
House of Commons. It is traditionally written on goatskin
vellum.
The Queen reads the entire speech in the same tone, so as to indicate her neutrality, implying neither approval nor disapproval of the policies she is announcing. Since the Cabinet forms part of Her Majesty's Government, the Queen makes constant reference to "My Government" when reading the text. It is also customary for the Queen, after listing the main bills that will be introduced during the yearly session, to state: "other measures will be laid before you", thus giving the Government ability to introduce other bills, not mentioned in the speech. The speech is concluded by the Queen saying:
"My Lords and Members of the House of Commons, I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your councils".
Following the speech, the Commons bow again and return to their Chamber.
Traditionally, the Houses of Parliament listen to the speech respectfully, keeping total silence in the presence of the monarch, neither applauding nor showing dissent towards the speech's contents. This silence, however, was broken once in 1998, when the Queen announced the Government's plan of abolishing the right of
hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords. A few members cried "no" and "shame", prompting others to shout "yes" and "hear hear". The Queen continued delivering her speech without any pause, ignoring the intervention. The conduct of those who interrupted the speech was highly criticized at the time.
Debate on the speech
After the Queen leaves, each Chamber proceeds to the consideration of an "Address in Reply to Her Majesty's Gracious Speech." But first, each House considers a bill ''pro forma'' to symbolize their right to deliberate independently of the monarch. In the House of Lords, the bill is called the ''
Select Vestries Bill'', while the Commons equivalent is the ''
Outlawries Bill''. The Bills are considered for the sake of form only, and do not make any actual progress. The consideration of the address in reply to the Throne Speech is the occasion for a debate on the Government's agenda. The debate on the Address in Reply is spread over several days. On each day, a different topic, such as foreign affairs or finance, is considered. The debate provides an indication of the views of Parliament regarding the government's agenda.
Equivalents, Commonwealth and elsewhere
Similar ceremonies are held in
Commonwealth realms where there are two houses of
parliament, such as
Canada and
Australia. On rare occasions, the Queen visits so as to open these parliaments and deliver the
Speech from the Throne herself. More usually, however, the
Governor General delivers the speech.
In
India, the President opens Parliament with an address similar to the Speech from the Throne. This is also the case in Commonwealth republics with a non-executive presidency such as
Malta,
Mauritius and
Singapore.
In non-Commonwealth countries, there are also similar speeches by the
Head of State. For instance, in the
United States, a former British colony, there is the
State of the Union Address, and in the
Philippines, a former American colony, there is the
State of the Nation Address.
External links
★
State Opening at UK Parliament website
★
Costs of State Opening from Hansard
العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
Español
