Letters Patent - Commission for Royal Approbation of the Speaker-Elect of the Commons [2019-11-04]

Letters Patent - Commission for Royal Approbation of the Speaker-Elect of the Commons [2019-11-04]

House of Commons

Delegating Powers

Commission of Queen Elizabeth II empowering several peers to allow and confirm the Commons' choice of Sir Lindsay Hoyle to be their Speaker.

Queen Elizabeth II

FOI request

2019-11-04

T. Onslow

ELIZABETH THE SECOND by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Our other Realms and Territories Queen Head of the Commonwealth Defender of the Faith To all to whom these Presents shall come Greeting Whereas We did lately for divers difficult and pressing affairs concerning Us the state and defence of Our United Kingdom and the Church ordain this Our present Parliament to begin and be holden at Our City of Westminster the thirteenth day of June in the sixty-sixth year of Our Reign on which day Our said Parliament was begun and holden and is there now holden And Whereas We have been informed that the Lower House of Our said Parliament have lately made choice of Our beloved and faithful Right Honourable Sir Lindsay Harvey Hoyle Kt in the room of Our beloved and faithful John Simon Bercow Esquire to be Speaker of the said Lower House of Our said Parliament of which choice We are graciously pleased to approve and to allow and confirm the same And forasmuch as for divers causes and considerations We cannot conveniently at this time be present in Our Royal Person in Our said Parliament Know Ye that We trusting in the fidelity and care of the Most Reverend Father in God and Our faithful Counsellor Justin Portal Archbishop of Canterbury Primate of All England and Metropolitan Our well beloved and faithful Counsellors
Robert James Buckland Chancellor of Great Britain
Natalie Jessica Baroness Evans of Bowes Park
Navnit Lord Dholakia
Igor Lord Judge
Angela Evans Baroness Smith of Basildon
and other Lords of Our Privy Council by the tenor of these Presents do give and grant to them or any three or more of them full power in Our name to declare and notify Our Royal Approbation of the choice of the said Lindsay Harvey Hoyle to be Speaker of the said Lower House of Our said Parliament and to allow and confirm the said Lindsay Harvey Hoyle to be Speaker of the said Lower House and to do all things in Our said Parliament that may be necessary for declaring Our said Royal Approbation allowance and confirmation of the said Lindsay Harvey Hoyle to be Speaker of the said Lower House of Our said Parliament In Witness whereof We have caused these Our Letters to be made Patent Witness Ourself at Westminster the fourth day of November in the sixty-eighth year of Our Reign

BY THE QUEEN HERSELF SIGNED WITH HER OWN HAND

HEATON

Sign Manual

Printed in Times New Roman.

Black and white Royal Arms at the top.

Royal name has a drop cap, is in boldface, and capitalized.

When MPs choose a Speaker, they must present them for Royal Approbation. Today, this is one of the royal functions that is invariably delegated to Lords Commissioners. While it's theoretically possible for the Crown to reject a Speaker-Elect, this hasn't happened since King Charles II refused to accept Sir Edward Seymour in 1679.

If the Speaker-Elect has been chosen at the beginning of a Parliament, they will ask the Lords Commissioners to confirm "all [the Commons'] ancient and undoubted rights and privileges, especially to freedom of speech in debate, to freedom from arrest, and to free access to His Majesty whenever occasion shall require." This is of course granted. However, this claim is not made if the Speaker-Elect is chosen during a Parliament as was the case here.

The way this instrument refers to Sir Lindsay Hoyle and John Bercow is unusual. As Privy Counsellors below the degree of baron, they would normally be referred to as "Our beloved and faithful Counsellor". However, Sir Lindsay is "Our beloved and faithful Right Honourable" while Bercow's status as a Privy Counsellors is omitted completely. It's worth noting that this document was prepared shortly before Parliament was dissolved ahead of an early General Election so it may have been written in haste.