Among British politicians, the Speaker of the House of Commons is the chief officer and the highest authority in the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The speaker has a number of duties and is elected to this position by other Members of Parliament.
UK Parliament
As the speaker of the House of Commons, it’s your duty to preside over the House’s debates and deliberate on the matters that are tabled for consideration. The speaker also decides which MP can speak as he/she maintains order during debates. They can also punish members who break House rules.
The speaker is not allowed to take part in debates or vote unless the vote is intended to break a tie. Other than these roles, the speaker also has administrative and procedural functions. There are other formalities such as the salary and residence of the speaker and other privileges they enjoy.
Recent Speakers
At the time of publishing this article, the House of Commons speaker is Sir Lindsay Hoyle. He has been a member of Parliament since 1997 and was elected to this seat in 2019. His predecessor was John Bercow who had occupied the position since 2009 and was a member of Parliament for Buckingham between 1997 and 2019.