On an historic day, CHARLOTTE ALT sees the House of Commons at its best paying tribute to the Queen.
After a grey and gloomy morning, it was once again the weather which provided a metaphor.
Laying their ideological differences aside Liz Truss and Sir Keir Starmer could have presented their tributes together to save time.
Both impersonal speeches remembered the Queen for her dedication, service, devotion and duty.
Starmer even borrowed Truss’ metaphor from earlier this week when he called on the nation to use the Queen’s strength and calm as a guiding principle to “face the storm and carry on and get Britain through the dark night.”
All differences seem forgotten alongside any indication that only days ago they were embroiled in a thunderous PMQs.
Truss rang in the “new Carolean age” of hope and progress: “The crown endures, our nation endures and, in that spirit, I say: God Save the King.”
All in all, solid, respectful contributions. Parliament does this stuff rather well.
A rainbow of excitement finally came from the backbenches in the form of Her Majesty’s 13th and 14th Prime Ministers.
With his permanently sunny disposition Boris Johnson lightened the mood.
Newly demoted to the Conservative rank and file, Johnson has not lost his way with words alongside his job as he praised the Queen’s humour and humanity.
He slipped up only once when he called himself Prime Minister only to hastily add the prefix ‘ex’.
Theresa May recounted a picnic at Balmoral where she accidentally dropped a piece of cheese which she then tried to quietly smuggle back onto the table – just to realise the Queen had observed her every move.
The dead-pan delivery produced gales of laughter around the chamber.
And we thought the worst thing she’d ever done was run through fields of wheat.
Featured image credits: Parliamentlive.tv
