In the Commons today, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer presided over the party’s tributes to the late queen and praised the Queen for having a “unique, personal connection with us all.”
The opposition leader praised her “complete dedication to service and duty, a genuine devotion to the nation, the Commonwealth, and the people she loved” during a special session of the Commons, adding: “In exchange for that, we loved her.”
He said she spent those decades “at the heart of our nation’s existence” as MPs convened for a protracted session to pay respect to the former queen, who passed away yesterday after spending 70 years atop the throne.
She didn’t just rule over us, he said, “she lived with us.”
She was a part of all of our joys and sorrows, our good and bad moments, hopes and worries.
The connection between the past that we value and the present that we live in was crucially woven by “Our Queen.”
He said she spent those decades “at the heart of our nation’s existence” as MPs convened for a protracted session to pay respect to the former queen, who passed away yesterday after spending 70 years atop the throne.
The current King Charles III knighted Sir Keir for his work as the director of public prosecutions.
“A reminder that our generation’s struggle against the horrors of Nazism or the creation of a new Britain from the ruins of World War II are not simply belong to the past, but are our collective legacy.”
“A reminder that the innovation, perseverance, and entrepreneurship that have long distinguished this country are as plentiful now as they have ever been.”
A timely reminder that hope for a brighter future remains strong.
This connection has never been more crucial than when the virus first broke out and our nation was put under lockdown.
When people most needed it, her straightforward message—that they would see their friends, family, and loved ones again—gave them courage and fortitude.
Sir Keir continued by quoting poet Philip Larkin, who said: “In times when nothing held, but deteriorated or became bizarre, there was one continuous good, she did not change.”
Sir Keir was knighted by the then-King Charles in 2014 for “services to law and criminal justice.”
It seems as if we are now experiencing a period in our history when things are, in Larkin’s words, “becoming odd.”