The United Kingdom Parliament reconvened on Tuesday with an agenda that included selecting a new speaker of the House of Commons and the formal swearing-in of newly elected members of Parliament, following last week’s general election.
The incumbent speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, retained his position through a reelection by his fellow MPs, and was returned to the post unopposed.
Putting himself forward to be reelected for the role in the House on Tuesday, Hoyle said: “I know from experience that decisions have consequences, but with experience comes wisdom and if reelected I will be guided by that as I continue to be fair, impartial and independent.”
Labour MP Cat Smith said Hoyle is a speaker “who champions the voices of his backbenchers”, adding: “Our speaker is fair, impartial, and independent. Newly elected members will find a great friend in our speaker, I know I have.”
The speaker, though initially elected as a party representative, is chosen by MPs to oversee House of Commons proceedings with strict impartiality. Upon taking this role, the speaker abandons party affiliations and remains neutral during debates and votes.
However, they continue to represent their constituency’s interests outside of parliamentary session.
Hoyle, who has served as speaker since 2019, contested and won the Chorley, Lancashire constituency seat without party affiliation. Before his election as speaker, Hoyle was a member of the Labour Party.
The House of Commons welcomed an unprecedented 335 new MPs, marking the largest influx of fresh faces in modern British political history.
This figure surpasses the previous record set in 1945, when 327 newcomers entered Parliament following the first election in a decade, held in the wake of World War II.
A total 643 MPs pledged an oath ahead of Parliament’s State Opening on July 17, promising to “be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles, his heirs and successors, according to law”.
There are 650 elected MPs, but Sinn Fein, which won seven seats across Northern Ireland, has a longstanding policy of abstentionism and does not take its seats in Westminster.
The oath of allegiance, which MPs must swear or affirm before taking their seat in the House of Commons, is derived from the Promissory Oaths Act 1868 and has been updated to reflect the current monarch, King Charles III.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer made a brief appearance and delivered a speech in Parliament, his first in the House of Commons as the country’s new leader, before departing for Washington in the United States to participate in a summit of NATO leaders.
Starmer said he hopes the new Parliament will replace the “politics of performance with the politics of service”.
Lawmaking and debates in the Commons are suspended until the State Opening ceremony next week, when the King’s Speech from the House of Lords will outline the government’s legislative agenda.
