Parliament is ‘prorogued’ this week. This is the official name for the period between the formal close of a parliamentary session and the beginning of the new, marked by the State Opening of Parliament and King’s Speech on Tuesday – the first in more than seven decades.
Some pomp and ceremony elements of the day will be time-honoured. One of the best is an MP is ‘held hostage’ at Buckingham Palace to ensure the monarch’s safe return.
But there is an important element to all these traditions and that’s the speech itself - essentially the announcement of the government’s programme of law making and policy objectives.
In the last session, 39 bills became law – notably the Online Safety Bill to protect children from harm and compel action on content related to promoting self-harm and pornography for example. There was also the Illegal Migration Bill and small boat crossings are down by 30% on this time last year.
There are ‘carry over' bills to complete like Renters Reform. There has been the usual speculation about what will be new and we will soon find out.
After the King’s Speech from the Throne in the House of Lords, an MP back in The Commons will have been chosen to make a Humble Address. In 1989 that MP was Eastbourne’s own Ian Gow. His renown oratory was at its very best and that speech has reached down through all these years and can still be enjoyed online today because it was the very first televised speech from Parliament. I traditionally play a clip at the start of my public speaking competition for year 9 students in Eastbourne who compete for The Ian Gow Cup.
Back at home, the announcement that Airbourne 2024 is on is great news having campaigned to secure its future, I am delighted. Another welcome announcement this week was saving our station ticket office. Another win.
The Remembrance season has started, and I will be out with The Royal British Legion this weekend. With images of war waging in Israel and Gaza and in Ukraine on our screens, the price paid for peace and freedom feels all the more real.
