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Rail Transport and Economic Growth

Part of Transport – in the House of Commons at on 12 February 2026.

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Photo of Lindsay Hoyle Lindsay Hoyle Speaker of the House of Commons, Chair, Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, Chair, Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, Chair, House of Commons Commission, Chair, Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, Chair, Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, Chair, Members Estimate Committee, Chair, Members Estimate Committee, Chair, Restoration and Renewal Client Board Committee, Chair, Restoration and Renewal Client Board Committee, Chair, Speaker's Conference (2024) Committee, Chair, Speaker's Conference (2024) Committee

I call the Father of the House.

Father of the House

The title Father of the House is given to the MP with the longest unbroken service in the House of Commons.

The most important duty of the Father of the House is to preside over the election of a new speaker should that office be vacant at the beginning of a Parliament.

A minister is never considered the Father of the House, even if that minister is more senior than any other MP.