Category: Royal Family

Clive Efford – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Clive Efford, the Labour MP for Eltham, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

On behalf of my constituents in Eltham, I send my deepest sympathies to His Royal Highness King Charles III and his family on the passing of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

Over the last few days we have identified a new syndrome, which I think will be studied for years: Queen Elizabeth II syndrome. I thought that I would be sorry for the nation at losing its Head of State; I thought that I would be very sympathetic and sorry for the family at losing a mother, a grandmother and a great-grandmother; but I must admit that I did not expect to feel such a deep personal sense of loss. I know others have expressed the same feeling.

If we conjure to mind the images that mould us—those that make us British, if you like—it is the Queen’s image that stands out most prominently. If we think of the characteristics that we associate with Britishness—strength, fairness, dignity, dedication, determination, duty, tradition, charity—those are all attributes that we would associate with the Queen in the way that she performed her task as our monarch. They are characteristics that she applied both at home and abroad. She was the embodiment of how we would want to be seen in the world.

The Queen’s longevity in her role gave her a deep knowledge and understanding of global politics and its personalities, which no other country benefited from. She saw politicians come and go: she reigned over 15 Prime Ministers, more than a quarter of the Prime Ministers we have ever had, and she saw 13 Presidents and six Popes. She was determined to lead by example each and every time she stepped out in public. Her generation—the war generation—is a tough generation. Her experience of that gave her the insight to know exactly what message we needed during the covid pandemic. She knew that, through our collective endeavour, we would get through, and she set that beacon at the end of the road, which will be etched forever in the rock of our nation: “We will meet again”.

The Queen’s generation knew loss in the darkest of hours, and her dedication to duty told her that at her darkest of times she must lead by example. She sat alone wearing a mask—obeying the rules—at her husband’s funeral. I do not think I admired her more at any other time. She did not waver in her duty. It is not fair to those who will follow to say that we will not see her like again. Our King has a hard act to follow, so I say: God help the King.

September 10, 2022
Charles Walker – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Sir Charles Walker, the Conservative MP for Broxbourne, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

Broxbourne mourns the death of Her Majesty the Queen, but it celebrates her life of selfless service. Quite simply, I join my constituents now in saying: God save the King.

September 10, 2022
Wendy Chamberlain – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Wendy Chamberlain, the Liberal Democrat MP for North East Fife, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

It is an honour to pay tribute to Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth in this place on behalf of my constituents in North East Fife.

As a relatively new MP, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the history of this place and the events that it has seen, and never more so than today when considering the Queen’s life, her dedication and her work. I feel, as I know many do, unanchored. We were all Elizabethans, the majority of us without realisation or acknowledgement. No matter our views on the monarchy, the Queen was there—our constant through ever-changing times. We have seen both a jolting and an imperceptible change in the filter of our lives, with QC changing to KC, and the prospect of future King’s Speeches in this place and the singing of “God Save the King.” Given the current line of succession, it is unlikely that any of us here will see a reigning queen again in our lifetime.

Like other hon. Members, I want to pay tribute to the Queen’s service, her dedication to the nations of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth and their citizens, and her commitment to her people. In Scotland, she was our Queen of Scots—the Scots as a people—and we know her love of Scotland, as a place of beauty, of escape and of peace. I trust that she found some of that beauty and peace on her visits to North East Fife.

Fife is known as the Kingdom of Fife in recognition of its royal and religious heritage, including that of St Andrews, named for our nation’s patron saint, and Falkland, whose palace is closely associated with another Queen of Scots, Mary. The Queen’s first and last visits to the area were to Leuchars military base, where in 2018, as their Colonel-in-Chief, she presented the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards with a new standard.

Visits in between took in the broad spectrum of meeting the communities of East Neuk, the former royal borough of Cupar and beyond, and visiting the ancient University of St Andrews, a place of recent family significance. I wish the Queen’s granddaughter, Lady Louise, well as she commences her studies there and hope that she finds comfort in our town. The breadth of the Queen’s engagements in North East Fife reflect her life, from leading her armed services to hearing from the smallest of children.

For me, as a primary child of the ’80s, the Queen meant Brownie promises and royal weddings, with the Queen off centre as a happy and proud parent. I never had the privilege of meeting her. My only connection is that I was one of the last babies christened by the Reverend Keith Angus before he went to Crathie Kirk, to become the Queen’s chaplain in Scotland. It has been wonderful to hear from right hon. and hon. Members who did meet her. The twinkle in her eye has come through strongly, although I have always wondered if, like Paddington, she could subject Ministers to a very hard stare.

I saw her once in person at the last Queen’s Speech she attended in this place, which took place during covid. She processed past me down the Royal Gallery, supported by her son, now our King. He and the rest of the royal family are in my thoughts and prayers, and those of my constituents. God save the King.

September 10, 2022
Jeremy Wright – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Sir Jeremy Wright, the Conservative MP for Kenilworth and Southam, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

It is an honour to have this opportunity to offer my condolences and those of my family and constituents to His Majesty the King and the royal family, and to pay tribute to Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Like many others, I was privileged to meet her a number of times, and it was easy to be intimidated by what she was, but never by who she was—with the authority, there was always great warmth.

We have heard many eloquent tributes in the last 48 hours, but perhaps none has been quite so eloquent as the faces of the people we have all seen on the streets. Those faces show her subjects’ struggle to reconcile the feelings of grief, gratitude and pride that we all share for the life and work of our late Queen. We grieve because of the scale of our national loss but also, more personally, because we relied on her constancy to anchor our own lives, to an extent that many of us are only now beginning to realise. We grieve, too, because we no longer have this remarkable individual fulfilling this uniquely challenging role.

The task of modern monarchy looks impossible—to encapsulate all that is good about a nation and a family of nations; to celebrate its diversity while drawing it together; to be looked to to set the tone at every moment of collective joy and disaster; and to share the best and worst moments of one’s own life with the country and the world. In meeting that challenge, Queen Elizabeth II was a breathtaking example of servant leadership for 70 years, making the impossible look effortless and maintaining an irrepressible sense of humour throughout.

It is for that leadership that we feel such gratitude amid our sadness. It was delivered by this most exemplary of British monarchs in the most British of styles, with resilience and dignity and without drama or fuss, with service to others as a primary and persistent vocation, however hard the task or the events of her own life—perhaps not always happy, but always glorious. This was majesty indeed.

We are proud that we were privileged to live in this second Elizabethan age, and that for so much of our recent history our nation was personified by the monarch we mourn today. Her loss is great, but her legacy is greater: a country, a people and a Commonwealth immeasurably better for her long and faithful service to us all.

September 10, 2022
Kevan Jones – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Kevan Jones, the Labour MP for North Durham, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

Like many, I had the great privilege of meeting the Queen as a member of the Privy Council, a Defence Minister and a Member of this House. I remember the first time I met her, not long after being first elected to the House in 2001. A number of us were invited to meet Her Majesty, and you can imagine that we were all very nervous and apprehensive about the visit. But as many colleagues have said in these tributes, once we met her, she made us feel at ease. She asked questions about our backgrounds and was interested in our constituencies. The other thing that struck me was her encyclopaedic knowledge of different parts of the United Kingdom.

Mention has already been made in these tributes of the Queen’s dedication to our armed forces. That was not simply because she was head of the armed forces, but because she had real devotion to them and an understanding of their role, as somebody who had served in them herself. I have to say that it went beyond that, however, and the best example I can give is the decision that was taken in 2009, when I was Veterans Minister, to award the Elizabeth Cross to the next of kin of those who had lost loved ones in the service of our country. I can attest to the fact that that decision was not popular among certain parts of the establishment, but it showed that the Queen recognised the important role that families have played, and continue to play, in supporting those we ask to serve as members of our armed forces.

For many of us, including many of my North Durham constituents, the Queen has been a constant presence in our lives in an increasingly changing world. She was dedicated to two important things: duty and service, which were the central tenets of her reign. In this cynical age, some may dismiss those values as old-fashioned and part of a bygone age, but I disagree. The cynics who aim to divide us need reminding of how the Queen led by example in saying that we are individuals with differences, but working together despite those differences makes us all stronger.

Yesterday we sat in this Chamber and listened to our new King’s address to the nation. Despite his grief and the huge responsibility that now rests on his shoulders, it is clear that the dedication to duty and service that the late Queen exemplified with such excellence will continue. God save the King.

September 10, 2022
Greg Clark – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Greg Clark, the Conservative MP for Tunbridge Wells, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

My constituents in the town of Royal Tunbridge Wells and the wider borough of Tunbridge Wells loved Her late Majesty. On behalf of us all, I express our gratitude for her life of service. In Royal Tunbridge Wells, we have a very special connection through Mr Harry Collins, who for 22 years has been the personal jeweller to Her late Majesty, responsible for the care of her jewels and for designing and making some of the new pieces that have been so admired around the world during that time. I had coffee with Mr Collins this morning. His devotion to Her late Majesty is absolute and he is much too discreet to break any confidences, but I did read that his appointment survived his having fallen flat on top of one of the Queen’s corgis when attempting to follow protocol by walking backwards during one of his early consultations.

Like many right hon. and hon. Members, one of the high points of my life was meeting Her late Majesty to be sworn in to the Privy Council for the first time, as I was in 2010. We heard yesterday and earlier today about some of the hazards of that occasion. So overwhelming is that moment that, I understand, men have suddenly been moved to curtsy in front of Her Majesty, and otherwise capable people have swayed on the footstool while trying to kneel on one knee, hold a Bible up in one hand and recite the Oath at the same time. Of course, the one person who did not mind was Her late Majesty herself, who put everyone at their ease.

One of the reasons that I will always be grateful to my right hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) is that, in reappointing me to the Cabinet this summer, I was able to swear the Oath of Office to Her late Majesty in person on 8 July at Windsor Castle. When I shook Her late Majesty’s hand, I was greeted with the most dazzling 1,000-watt smile and sparkling eyes that suggested that she was absolutely thrilled to see me. I strongly suspect that Her late Majesty’s demeanour did not reflect the fulfilment of a three-year hope that the Prime Minister would restore me to office.

Instead, it showed that at the age of 96, on a hot summer’s afternoon, Her Majesty still recognised that, for everyone she met, it was a moment that they would treasure forever. In a second, it revealed her personal kindness and adherence to the highest of standards, right to the last.

Across the world, over 70 years, hundreds of thousands of people have been treated with such kindness and thoughtfulness by Her Majesty the Queen. Her life was one of constant, devoted and selfless service. We are blessed that she reigned over us. May she rest in peace, and God save the King.

September 10, 2022
Naz Shah – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Naz Shah, the Labour MP for Bradford West, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

So many of us are trying to find the words to describe the reign of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. Many have eloquently, philosophically, emotionally and even poetically alluded to her legacy and reign. Despite all the great words that have been and will be said, we all fall short, not because of the lack of words or of heartfelt emotion on this momentous occasion, but because even our greatest words fall short when it comes to doing justice to the life, legacy and reign of an extraordinary monarch.

We look around the world and we realise that these are sombre moments not just for the people of Britain or the Commonwealth, but for the entire world. Indeed, the elegant words of President Macron of France,

“ To you, she was your Queen. To us, she was the Queen.”

highlight how she was a worldly figure who existed beyond the nations and realm, in the hearts of people across the world. She was a unifying monarch, who brought people together in a way that was unique to her. That is why, when we look across our nation at the sadness and grief that people and communities are feeling, we see that people of all races, of all religions and of all communities are united in the devotion and heartfelt emotion they are showing at the passing of their Queen.

This unified attachment to Her Majesty did not just appear out of nowhere, but was directly a symbol she expressed throughout her reign. In 1952, in her first Christmas broadcast, at a time when inclusion and diversity were very much unseen in society, she addressed the nations and asked that people, whatever their religion, pray for her and her reign. We heard the same message of inclusivity and diversity from our new monarch, King Charles III.

In the same way, despite Her Majesty keeping her views close to her heart, her deep-felt connection to the Commonwealth and to justice was obvious. By summer 1986, the Queen’s apparent objection to the refusal by then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to place sanctions on apartheid South Africa was widely known. It is no wonder that her favourite African leader was Nelson Mandela, with whom she held a deep friendship until he sadly passed.

On a more local front, the Queen made several visits and was welcomed by the people of Bradford throughout her 70-year reign. Eighteen months after her coronation, on her nationwide tour, she visited Bradford, marking the city’s first royal visit since 1942. She visited Bradford Park Avenue during this trip and was sung to by 30,000 schoolchildren. On behalf of all my constituents, I hope I can express their thoughts, feelings and condolences to the royal family at this difficult time.

As one era comes to an end, we pray for the next. As a woman of faith, I admired Her Majesty as she was a person of deep faith and belief. I end with the words of a great Muslim poet, Rumi:

“You are not a drop in the ocean; you are an entire ocean in a drop”.

Her Majesty was an ocean in her kindness, selflessness and humour, and she made herself a drop through her humbleness, sense of duty and service to her people. God save our King.

September 10, 2022
Damian Green – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Damian Green, the Conservative MP for Ashford, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

Like many others, I suspect, my initial reaction on hearing of the Queen’s death was not just sadness and regret, but a peculiar sense of uncertainty. How could the world continue without this magnificent woman playing a central role in the background of all our lives? Also like many others, I was privileged and lucky enough to meet the Queen a number of times and can add to the testimonies of many other Members about her warmth, kindness, vast depth of knowledge, razor-sharp mind and fabulously dry sense of humour. My best evidence of the latter was one of those Privy Council meetings that takes place when a new member is appointed—I am happy to report to my right hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) that it was not his—and involves a lot of kneeling, moving, kneeling again, holding a Bible, kissing and talking. Politicians are good at words, but many of them are not very good at choreography and I vividly remember one occasion when somebody got it badly wrong. There was chaos. My right hon. Friend was nothing on that. As hon. Members can imagine, it provoked silent but extreme hilarity and glee among all the close friends of the poor wretch who had got it so badly wrong. I looked across and the Queen’s face was completely impassive, but the look in her eyes told me that the person biting their tongue hardest in that room was Her Majesty.

One of the Queen’s greatest personal attributes was that, despite being royalty all her life and the monarch for 70 years, she did not have a trace of self-regarding pomposity. But her many personal attributes were not enough to make her a great leader—she had so much more than that to give. Particularly, she had a genius for necessary reform, for taking an ancient institution of huge importance and changing it little by little so that it stayed relevant in fast-moving times. She enabled the monarchy to remain ancient and modern. It is an extraordinary achievement.

Even in the last 48 hours, we have seen that the new King is proceeding along the same path, with the televising of the Accession Council and the unexpected walkabout at Buckingham Palace yesterday. Those tell us that King Charles will preserve the traditions of the monarchy while keeping it fit for the 21st century and beyond, so we can be assured that we will continue to have a people’s monarchy. There can be no greater tribute to the late Queen, and no better platform for the new King, than that we can say with great confidence, “God save the King”.

September 10, 2022
Stephen Timms – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Sir Stephen Timms, the Labour MP for East Ham, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

Like other Members, my main memories of Her late Majesty the Queen are of visits to my constituency. In 1987, I was chair of Newham Council’s planning committee, and I negotiated with Mowlem the terms of its planning permission for London City airport. I attended the opening by Her Majesty in November 1987. It was pointed out that the terminal at the airport was on the site where her grandfather opened the King George V dock in 1921, 66 years before.

The airport was controversial locally. It turned out that most local residents, still smarting from the economic damage of the docks’ closure 10 years earlier, welcomed the jobs it was bringing, but some were very unhappy, understandably, about living with the noise of the planes. On the day of the airport opening, there was a small demonstration. The airport management, rightly wanting to avoid unnecessary ill feeling, invited half a dozen demonstrators inside and gave them a chance to meet the Queen and set out their case. When it came to their turn, the residents explained their fears about aircraft noise. The Queen listened carefully to what they had to say and replied, “I know exactly what you mean. You should hear the noise at Windsor castle of the jets coming in to land at Heathrow.”

The Prime Minister said yesterday that Her late Majesty had a unique ability to transcend difference and heal division. That is what she did on that occasion. Her off-the-cuff response transformed the situation. Arriving as disgruntled outsiders, the residents had been transformed into insiders who had shared a moment of recognition and warmth with their head of state. The rancour between the objectors and the airport was, I think, permanently eased.

The day after the opening ceremony for London 2012, which was a Saturday, when we might have thought that after the night before the then 86-year-old monarch would have been entitled to a day off, the Queen returned to London City airport to mark its 25th anniversary. Other memorable visits included, in her Golden Jubilee tour, a visit to Green Street, the most successful Asian shopping street in the country—we claim—where she was greeted by enthusiastic women in colourful saris waving Union Jacks, creating wonderful photographs in the Daily Mail the next day.

We always remember the Queen opening what we now call Newham University Hospital in December 1983. Her reign was seven decades: those treasured memories will last for many decades more.

September 10, 2022
Andrew Mitchell – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Andrew Mitchell, the Conservative MP for Sutton Coldfield, in the House of Commons on 10 September 2022.

For all the pomp and tradition, Her late Majesty’s true magic was in her humility. She did not need a gilded throne or royal regalia to touch people; it was in her smile, her poise, her natural charm: understated yet reassuring—the best of Britain.

Thank you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to make this brief tribute on behalf of the royal town of Sutton Coldfield—a royal town now for 494 years and one that, at this sad time, is united with the rest of the country in shared sorrow. The Queen’s visit to the ninth world scout jamboree held in Sutton park in 1957 is still remembered by my older constituents, as she came to join in the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of scouting and had lunch in our magnificent town hall.

I have never visited a primary school where one of the first questions has not been, “Have you met the Queen?” I had the privilege and good fortune to meet the Queen when I was her International Development Secretary. Like millions around the world, I will never forget every second of those meetings. She was intensely interested in the less developed members of the Commonwealth. She was the reason that the Commonwealth not only survived but flourished and grew, reaching out to unexpected parts of the world, with Rwanda enthusiastically joining.

At the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting held in June this year in Rwanda, I watched the binding power of the monarchy, as the King, as he now is, spoke on behalf of Her late Majesty of the ideals and values that she inspired and to which so many nations now aspire. In Kigali, the capital of one of the Commonwealth’s youngest countries, the national flag and the flag of the East African Community are today flying at half-mast and will continue to do so until the Queen’s funeral.

I also remember travelling for many hours in Uganda to the hospital in Masaka run by the 80-year-old sister of the Medical Missionaries of Mary who had recently received an OBE from the Queen for her 50 years of service. In the hospital entrance hung a huge picture of the President of Uganda, Mr Museveni, alongside an equally huge one of Her Majesty the Head of the Commonwealth.

Tomorrow in the royal town of Sutton Coldfield, we will hold a service of remembrance in our town church, Holy Trinity, followed by a reading of today’s proclamation, and we will mourn the loss of our great Queen, who meant so much to us all.

September 10, 2022