Clerk of the House of Commons

Last updated

Clerk of the House of Commons
House of Commons of the United Kingdom logo 2018.svg
Incumbent
Tom Goldsmith
since 1 October 2023
House of Commons
StatusPrincipal constitutional adviser to the House and Corporate Officer of the House
Seat Palace of Westminster
Appointer The Crown (de jure)
Clerk of the Parliaments (de facto)
Inaugural holderRobert de Melton
Formation1363
first permanent appointment

The clerk of the House of Commons is the chief executive of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and before 1707 in the House of Commons of England.

Contents

The formal name for the position held by the Clerk of the House of Commons is Under Clerk of the Parliaments; [1] The chief clerk of the House of Lords is the Clerk of the Parliaments.

Appointment

The Clerk of the House is appointed by the sovereign by Letters Patent, in which they are styled "Under Clerk of the Parliaments [...] to attend upon the Commons". [2] Before 1748, the Clerkship of the House of Commons could be purchased until Jeremiah Dyson (then Clerk of the House) ended the practice of purchase when he left the Clerkship. [3]

Duties

Sir Courtenay Ilbert Courtenay Peregrine Ilbert.png
Sir Courtenay Ilbert

The Clerk of the House is the principal constitutional adviser to the house, and adviser on all its procedure and business, including parliamentary privilege, and frequently appears before select and joint committees examining constitutional and parliamentary matters. As with all the members of the House Service, he is politically entirely impartial and is not a civil servant. Until 1 January 2008, when the reforms to the house's governance proposed by the Tebbit Review of management and services of the house were implemented, the clerk was the head of the Clerk's Department. [4] He sits at the table of the house, in the right-hand chair (the left-hand chair, looking towards the Speaker’s chair) for part of every sitting. The historic role of the clerks at the table is to record the decisions of the house (not what is said, which is recorded by Hansard). This they (but not the clerk) still do. The clerks at the table used to wear court dress with wing collar and white tie, a bob (barrister’s) wig and a silk gown. However, as of February 2017 the clerks will only have to wear gowns. [5] For the State Opening of Parliament and other state occasions, the Clerk of the House wears full court dress with breeches, and a lace jabot and cuffs. [6]

Incumbent

As of October 2023, the office is currently held by Tom Goldsmith, previously the Principal Clerk of the Table Office, who replaced Sir John Benger when he retired on 1 October 2023. [7]

List of Clerks of the House of Commons

14th century

15th century

16th century

17th century

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Commons of the United Kingdom</span> Lower house of the UK Parliament

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 members known as members of Parliament (MPs). MPs are elected to represent constituencies by the first-past-the-post system and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom)</span> Presiding officer of the House of Commons

The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the lower house and primary chamber of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The current speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, was elected Speaker on 4 November 2019, following the retirement of John Bercow. Hoyle began his first full parliamentary term in the role on 17 December 2019, having been unanimously re-elected after the 2019 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives</span> Political position in the Australian parliament

The speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Australian House of Representatives, the lower chamber within the Parliament of Australia. The counterpart in the upper house is the president of the Senate. The office of the speakership was established in 1901 by section 35 of the Constitution of Australia. The primary responsibilities of the office is to oversee house debates, determine which members may speak, maintain order and the parliamentary and ministerial codes of conduct during sessions and uphold all rules and standing orders. The current speaker of the House of Representatives is Milton Dick, who was elected on 26 July 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives</span> Presiding officer of the New Zealand House of Representatives

In New Zealand, the speaker of the House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer and highest authority of the New Zealand House of Representatives. The individual who holds the position is elected by members of the House from among their number in the first session after each general election. They hold one of the highest-ranking offices in New Zealand. The current Speaker is Gerry Brownlee, who was elected on 5 December 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lord Speaker</span> Presiding officer of the British House of Lords

The Lord Speaker of the House of Lords is the presiding officer, chairman and highest authority of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The office is analogous to the Speaker of the House of Commons: the Lord Speaker is elected by the members of the House of Lords and is expected to be politically impartial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Third Protectorate Parliament</span> 17th-century English parliament

The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons. It was a bicameral Parliament, with an Upper House having a power of veto over the Commons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremiah Dyson</span> British civil servant and politician

Jeremiah Dyson was a British civil servant and politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clerk of the Parliaments</span> Chief clerk of the House of Lords

The Clerk of the Parliaments is the chief clerk of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The position has existed since at least 1315, and duties include preparing the minutes of Lords proceedings, advising on proper parliamentary procedure and pronouncing royal assent. Many of the Clerk's duties are now fulfilled by his deputies and the Clerk of the Parliaments' Office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clerk of the Crown in Chancery</span> Senior British civil servant

The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in Great Britain is a senior civil servant who is the head of the Crown Office.

The Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the presiding officer of the Legislative Assembly, New South Wales's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is Greg Piper, who was elected on 9 May 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir Job Charlton, 1st Baronet</span> English judge and politician

Sir Job Charlton, 1st Baronet KS was an English judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1659 and 1679. He was Speaker of the House of Commons of England briefly in 1673.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons (United Kingdom)</span> Parliamentary official responsible for order in the House of Commons

The Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons is a parliamentary official responsible for order in the House of Commons. The office dates to 1415 and traditionally included responsibility for security. The role is now mainly ceremonial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Hatsell</span>

John Hatsell was an English civil servant, clerk of the House of Commons, and an authority on parliamentary procedure.

The President of the New South Wales Legislative Council is the presiding officer of the upper house of the Parliament of New South Wales, the Legislative Council. The presiding officer of the lower house is the speaker of the Legislative Assembly. The role of President has generally been a partisan office, filled by the governing party of the time. As of May 2023, the president is Ben Franklin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Rogers, Baron Lisvane</span> Clerk of the House of Commons

Robert James Rogers, Baron Lisvane,, FLSW is a British life peer and retired public servant. He served as Clerk of the House of Commons from October 2011 until August 2014.

The 1902 Birthday Honours were announced on 10 November 1902, to celebrate the birthday of Edward VII the previous day. The list included appointments to various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and the British Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Natzler</span>

Sir David Lionel Natzler is a former Clerk of the House of Commons, the principal constitutional adviser to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, and adviser on all its procedure and business. He was the 50th person to hold the role. Appointed by letters patent in March 2015, he was designated acting Clerk upon the retirement of Sir Robert Rogers in August 2014. He announced his retirement in a letter to the Speaker on 14 November 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Benger</span> British civil servant (born 1959)

Sir John Stuart Benger is a British civil servant. He has served as Master of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, since October 2023. He previously served as Clerk of the House of Commons, the principal constitutional adviser to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, and adviser on all its procedure and business, from 2019 to 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Rose (Clerk of the Parliaments)</span> British Clerk of the Parliaments

Sir William Rose was a British barrister and civil servant who served as Clerk of the Parliaments from 1875 to 1885, succeeding his father.

Thomas Goldsmith is a British parliamentary official. Since 2023, he has served as Clerk of the House of Commons, the principal constitutional adviser to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.

References

  1. Parliamentary Corporate Bodies Act 1992, section 2(2): "The individual who for the time being is by letters patent appointed to the office of the Under Clerk of the Parliaments (and who is customarily referred to as the Clerk of the House of Commons) shall be the Corporate Officer of the Commons."
  2. "Clerk of the House of Commons". erskinemay.parliament.uk. Houses of Parliament. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  3. Rogers, Robert (18 September 2012). Who Goes Home? A Parliamentary Miscellany. Biteback Publishing. ISBN   9781849544801.
  4. "Clerk of the House of Commons". www.parliament.uk. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  5. "Speaker Bercow says Commons clerks' wigs to get chop – BBC News". BBC News. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  6. "Clerk of the House and Chief Executive". Parliament.uk. 24 July 2014.
  7. Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House (30 March 2023). "Speaker's Statement". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . United Kingdom: House of Commons.
  8. "No. 27164". The London Gazette . 13 February 1900. p. 999.
  9. "House of Commons Commission decisions, 16 October 2014". parliament.uk. 20 October 2014.
  10. "Clerk of the House of Commons appointment: Dr John Benger". GOV.UK. Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street. 5 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  11. "Tom Goldsmith appointed as Clerk of the House of Commons". Parliament of the United Kingdom. 30 March 2023.