Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously serving member, while in others it refers to the oldest member. Recently, the title Mother of the House or Mother of Parliament has also been used, although the usage varies among countries; it is either the female alternative to Father of the House, being applied when the relevant member is a woman, or refers to the oldest or longest-serving woman without reference to male members.
The Father of the House is a title that is bestowed on the senior member of the House of Commons who has the longest continuous service.[1][2] If two or more members have the same length of current uninterrupted service, then whoever was sworn in earlier, as listed in Hansard, is named as Father of the House.[3] Traditionally, however, the qualifications used for the Father of the House are not entirely clear and may have included the oldest member, the member with the longest aggregate service, or the member who entered the House longest ago.[2] The first recorded usage of the term dates to 1788, in an obituary of Thomas Noel.[1] In 2017, Harriet Harman was described as "Mother of the House" by Prime Minister Theresa May, in recognition of her status as the longest-continuously serving woman MP.[4]
The only formal duty of the Father of the House is to preside over the election of the Speaker of the House of Commons. The Father of the House may also participate in ceremonial events, and is the second member to be sworn in after the Speaker.[1]
Among the twentieth-century Fathers, there were several very prominent figures; four former Prime Ministers became Father of the House, and a fifth, Henry Campbell-Bannerman, was simultaneously Father of the House and Prime Minister from May 1907 until soon before his death during April 1908.[2]
The titles "Father of the House" and "Father of the Senate" are sometimes used to refer to the members of each chamber of the Parliament of Australia with the longest continuous service.[5] The current Father of the House is Bob Katter (MP since 1993) and the current Mother of the Senate is Penny Wong (senator since 2002).
According to House of Representatives Practice, the title Father of the House is a "completely informal designation" with "no functions attached to it".[6] The equivalent publication for the Senate, Odgers' Australian Senate Practice, describes the title Father of the Senate as "now seldom referred to or used". It also notes that "as no woman senator has ever been in this situation, it is not clear what the title would be in that circumstance".[7]
The longest-serving member of the House of Commons who is not a cabinet minister is known as the Dean of the House, and presides over the election of the Speaker at the beginning of each Parliament. As of September 2021, the current Dean of the House is Bloc Québécois MP Louis Plamondon, who was first elected to the Commons as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party in 1984.
Czech Republic
In the Chamber of Deputies, if previous President of the Chamber of Deputies or his deputies are not elected, the oldest MP serves as the Acting President presiding over the constitutive session, before new president is elected.[8]
In the Senate, if previous President of the Senate or his deputies are not elected for the next term, the oldest Senator serves as the Acting President presiding over the opening session gathered every two years, before election of the new president.[9]
Until 2009, the oldest member of the European Parliament presided over the opening of a new session and the election of the President of the European Parliament.[10]
Starting with the Frankfurter Nationalversammlung (Frankfurt Parliament) of 1848, all German parliaments had a father of the House, usually called Alterspräsident (President by right of age). This tradition was continued into the Weimar Republic and, after being discontinued in Nazi Germany, was resumed by the present Parliament (Bundestag) in the Federal Republic, whose rules of procedure mandate that the father of the house presides over the Parliament (Bundestag) at the start of each legislative period.
In accordance with tradition, the Alterspräsident first ascertains himself that he is indeed the oldest member of the Bundestag by stating his date of birth and asking if anyone is present, who was born before this date. If no older member of the Bundestag is present he will formally declare that he indeed is the Alterspräsident and will start proceedings. (In 2017, as explained below, the position was changed to refer to the longest sitting member. Prospective Alterspräsident state the number of years served in the Bundestag and asks if anyone has served more years.)
The Alterspräsident then delivers the first programmatic speech and supervises the election of the President of the Bundestag, to whom he then immediately yields his power. The newly elected president will in turn supervise the elections of the Vice Presidents of the Bundestag.
The rules of order of the Bundestag also state that the Alterspräsident shall preside over sessions of the Bundestag at any given time during a legislative period, if the whole Presidium (i.e. the President and the Vice Presidents of the Bundestag) is altogether unable to perform its duties.
As the Alterspräsident's opening speech usually draws a certain amount of public attention, the position has recently attracted controversy, when the Party of Democratic Socialism (the successor of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany) obtained the position by including aged independents (Stefan Heym in 1994, Fred Gebhardt in 1998) in their party lists. In 2017, the Bundestag changed its rules of procedure to have the member with the longest service in the Bundestag serve as father of the house, rather than the oldest member.[14]
Hermann Otto Solms (born 1940, member of parliament for 33 years, 1980–2013 and 2017–2021)
2017–2021
FDP
The first father of the house under the changed rules of procedure. Stood in for Wolfgang Schäuble (member of parliament for 45 years, since 1972), who was nominated (and subsequently elected) President of the Bundestag, so that he would not have to preside over his own election.
In Hong Kong, there is no such term as "Father of the House". Instead, the longest-serving member was termed the Senior Unofficial Member and was the highest-ranking unofficial member of the Executive Council and the Legislative Council until the title was abolished in 1995 and 1992 respectively.
After the handover of Hong Kong, the member of the Legislative Council with the highest order of precedence, determined according to the length of continuous service in the council, was tasked with presiding over the election of President of the council, until 2017.
Hungary
In Hungary, the term országgyűlés korelnöke (President by the age) refers to the oldest member of the National Assembly (previously House of Representatives, the lower house). Before the open session, the senior chairperson and junior notaries review the mandates of all the elected MPs in addition to their own. He or she presides over the newly elected parliament until the appointment of the officials.
It is also worth mentioning that József Madarász who was Father of the House from 1892 to his death in 1915 at the age of 100, was also member of the Parliament from 1848 (whenever it was convened) and prior to that he was emissary of the Hungarian Diet, the predecessor of Parliament in Hungary, from 1832. Thus making him the longest serving member of Parliament in Hungary at a record of 82 years.
In the beginning of some Knessets, the oldest member assumes temporary duties of the speaker before the election of a permanent speaker, In the past it was the oldest member of Knesset, now it is the longest-serving member. The oldest member of the 24th Knesset is Benny Begin.
In Luxembourg, the longest-serving member of the Chamber of Deputies, per the Chamber's regulations, serves as President of the Chamber during the first session of a legislature, until a President is formally elected. They are assisted in this task by the two youngest members.[15]
In Malaysia the term "Father of the House" is rarely used. Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah who was elected during 1974, has been the longest-serving MP in the Dewan Rakyat. He was the oldest-serving MP aged 86years, 11months until former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was reelected to the Dewan Rakyat at the age of 92, and now he is 98years, 8months of age. Both of them ended their long serving in the Dewan Rakyat after being defeated in 2022 Malaysian general election. As of 2022, Muhyiddin Yassin took in place as he served from 1978 to 1986 and continued from 1995 until now.
In New Zealand, the terms "Father of the House" and "Mother of the House", as unofficial titles, designate the longest-continuously serving male or female MP of the House of Representatives, respectively. The Father and Mother of the House have no official role in Parliament. The current Father of the House is Gerry Brownlee who has served continuously since 1996. The current Mother of the House is Judith Collins who has served continuously since 2002.[16]
Following a general election, the eldest member of each of the lower (Sejm) and upper (Senate) houses of the Polish parliament is given the honorary post of Senior Marshal until the new permanent leaders of the houses, the Marshal of the Sejm and the Marshal of the Senate, are elected in a vote by their respective members. This normally takes place as the first item on the agenda at the first session, over which the Senior Marshal presides. Most recently, the title of Senior Marshal was bestowed on Marek Sawicki, member of the X Sejm, and Michał Seweryński, senator of the XI Senate. Both assumed their roles on 13 November 2023, following the formation of the new parliament as a result of the 15 October general election.
Russia
Traditionally when a new Russian parliament is formed the eldest deputy opens and manages the first session until a chairman is elected. In the history of the post-Soviet Dumas these were:
Until his death on 23 March 2015, former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew was the longest-serving Member of Parliament (Tanjong Pagar) and thus the Father of the House.[17]As of April2015[update], emeritus Senior Minister and former pm Goh Chok Tong later became Father of the House, as the longest-serving MP (Marine Parade).[17] Upon Goh's retirement in 2020, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is Father of the House having served since 1984.
Sweden
In Sweden the Riksdagsordningen law states that the member of the Riksdag who has held their elected seat for the longest shall be the Ålderspresident, which translates to President by age. The Ålderspresident acts as speaker of the Riksdag after each election, before the Speaker of the Riksdag has been elected. The Ålderspresident also acts as speaker in case of hindrance on behalf of the Speaker and all three Deputy Speakers.
Members of the Riksdag who has held the position of Ålderspresident since the abolition of bicameralism:
In the United States, the title "Father" of the House (although used for about a century starting in 1816)[18] does not exist, but in the lower house, the House of Representatives the position known as Dean of the House is almost exactly the same position—that is, it is a largely ceremonial position bestowed on the member with the longest continuous service. Less similar is the position in the Senate (the upper house) known as President Pro Tempore, the holder of which has since 1945 gained the position through seniority, but who also must be a member of the party holding a majority in the Senate.
Since March 2022, with the death of Don Young, the Dean of the House has been Hal Rogers, who was elected to the House of Representatives in 1980 and began serving in 1981.
The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and people of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as a chief spokespersons for their respective political parties holding the majority and the minority in the United States Senate. They are each elected as majority leader and minority leader by the senators of their party caucuses: the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Senate Republican Conference.
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members often have a different title. The terms congressman/congresswoman or deputy are equivalent terms used in other jurisdictions. The term parliamentarian is also sometimes used for members of parliament, but this may also be used to refer to unelected government officials with specific roles in a parliament and other expert advisers on parliamentary procedure such as the Senate parliamentarian in the United States. The term is also used to the characteristic of performing the duties of a member of a legislature, for example: "The two party leaders often disagreed on issues, but both were excellent parliamentarians and cooperated to get many good things done."
President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies.
The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England.
The speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. A member of Parliament (MP), they are elected at the beginning of each new parliament by fellow MPs. The speaker's role in presiding over Canada's House of Commons is similar to that of speakers elsewhere in other countries that use the Westminster system.
The dean of the United States House of Representatives is the longest continuously serving member of the House. The current dean is Hal Rogers, a Republican from Kentucky, who has served in the House since 1981. The dean is a symbolic post whose only customary duty is to swear in a speaker of the House after they are elected. This responsibility was first recorded in 1819 but has not been observed continuously – at times, the speaker-elect was the current dean or the speaker-elect preferred to be sworn in by a member of their own party when the dean belonged to another party. The dean comes forward on the House Floor to administer the oath to the speaker-elect, before the new speaker then administers the oath to the other members.
Dissolution of a legislative assembly is the simultaneous termination of service of all of its members, in anticipation that a successive legislative assembly will reconvene later with possibly different members. In a democracy, the new assembly is chosen by a general election. Dissolution is distinct on the one hand from abolition of the assembly, and on the other hand from its adjournment or prorogation, or the ending of a legislative session, any of which begins a period of inactivity after which it is anticipated that the same members will reassemble. For example, the "second session of the fifth parliament" could be followed by the "third session of the fifth parliament" after a prorogation, but would be followed by the "first session of the sixth parliament" after a dissolution.
In Canada, the dean of the House is the sitting Member of the House of Commons with the longest unbroken record of service. The dean is responsible for presiding over the election of the Speaker of the House of Commons at the beginning of each Parliament. The position is the equivalent of the Father of the House in the British House of Commons.
Baby of the House is the unofficial title given to the youngest member of a parliamentary house. The term is most often applied to members of the British parliament from which the term originated. The title is named after the Father of the House, which is given to the longest serving member of the British and other parliaments.
The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives are elected to a two-year term without term limits.
The Nevada Assembly is the lower house of the Nevada Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Nevada, the upper house being the Nevada Senate. The body consists of 42 members, elected to two-year terms from single-member districts. Each district contained approximately 64,299 people as of the 2010 United States Census. Term limits, limiting assembly members to six 2-year terms, took effect in 2010. Twelve members of the Nevada Assembly were termed out with the 2010 election serving their last legislative session in 2011.
The president of the Bundestag presides over the sessions of the Bundestag, the federal parliament of Germany, with functions similar to that of a speaker in other countries. In the German order of precedence, the office is ranked second after the president and before the chancellor.
The speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly is the presiding officer of the Northern Ireland Assembly, elected on a cross-community vote by the Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly. A principal deputy speaker and two deputy speakers are elected to help fulfil the role. The office of Speaker is currently held by the MLA for Belfast South Edwin Poots of the Democratic Unionist Party.
The president of the National Assembly is the presiding officer (speaker) of the National Assembly of Thailand. Since 1997, the office has been an ex officio position occupied by the speaker of the House of Representatives of Thailand. The president is therefore an MP, usually from the majority party in the House of Representatives. The president is elected at the beginning of a House session immediately after an election, there are no term limits for the office. In the aftermath of the Coup d'état in 2014, the function of legislative assembly was turned over to the junta-controlled National Legislative Assembly, which Pornpetch Wichitcholchai, President of the National Legislative Assembly, is occupying ex officio position of President of the National Assembly.
The representation of women in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom has been an issue in the politics of the United Kingdom at numerous points in the 20th and 21st centuries. Originally debate centred on whether women should be allowed to vote and stand for election as Members of Parliament. The Parliament Act 1918 gave women over 21 the right to stand for election as a Member of Parliament. The United Kingdom has had three female Prime Ministers: Margaret Thatcher (1979–1990), Theresa May (2016–2019), and Liz Truss (2022). The publication of the book Women in the House by Elizabeth Vallance in 1979 highlighted the under-representation of women in Parliament. In more modern times concerns about the under-representation of women led the Labour Party to introduce and, decades later, abandon all-women short lists, something which was later held to breach discrimination laws.
The president of the Senate is the presiding officer of the Spanish Senate, the upper house of Spain's Cortes Generales. It is the fourth authority of the country after the Monarch, the Prime Minister and the President of the Congress of Deputies. The president is elected among and by the incumbent senators. When the president is unable to exercise power, vice presidents of the Senate exercise the powers of the Senate president.
The Oldest Member is the eldest Member of European Parliament at the beginning of a new legislature and at the mid-term election of a new President of the European Parliament. Until 2009 the Oldest Member presided over the chamber during the election of the President, similar to the Father of the House. This privilege was abolished in 2009.
The President of the Hamburg Parliament presides over the sessions of the Bürgerschaft, the parliament of Hamburg, with functions similar to that of a speaker in other countries. In the Hamburg order of precedence, the office is ranked first before the first Mayor.
The father of the House is a title that is bestowed on the senior member of the House of Commons who has the longest continuous service. If two or more members have the same length of current uninterrupted service, then whoever was sworn in earliest, as listed in Hansard, is named as Father of the House.
The President by right of age (Alterspräsident) is the longest-serving member of the German Bundestag.
1 2 3 "The Father of the House"(PDF). Factsheet M3. London: House of Commons Information Office. March 2009. Archived from the original(PDF) on 25 March 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2009.
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