State Opening of Parliament begins with safety sweep

Security checks are taking place ahead of today’s State Opening of Parliament, where King Charles will reveal Sir Keir Starmer‘s plans for Britain – in the first speech from the throne under a Labour government for 14 years.

Dozens of police officers have been pictured sweeping Whitehall ahead of the traditional day which is rich in English constitutional history.

In a day of pomp and pageantry, the King will travel from Buckingham Palace to Westminster in a royal procession before making a grand speech in the House of Lords.

Charles will deliver his speech, the second of his reign, to MPs and Lords at around 11.30am today. When he opened Parliament for the first time as monarch in November, he paid tribute to his late mother Queen Elizabeth II. 

Prior to the King’s arrival, the Yeomen of the Guard, the royal bodyguards, will carry out a ceremonial search of Parliament for explosives, continuing a tradition that dates back to the foiled Gunpowder Plot of 1605.

Back then, Catholic conspirator Guy Fawkes was discovered beneath Parliament guarding enough explosives to blow King James I and the rest of the English aristocracy to smithereens.

The State Opening of Parliament began during the 15th century. The first ever depiction was made in 1523 – when King Henry VIII was on the throne. 

There are a number of historic traditions involved in the day, including the role of Black Rod – the senior official responsible for maintaining order at the House of Lords. 

The most recognised task is banging on the door of the House of Commons with a ceremonial staff to summon MPs to hear speech.

To symbolise the primacy of the Commons, the door is slammed in Black Rod’s face, and the holder of the office is required to bang three times before the door is opened.

Black Rod acts as secretary to the Lord Great Chamberlain, with responsibility for major ceremonial events in the Palace of Westminster.

The position is appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of a selection panel chaired by the Lord Speaker.

In 2018, Sarah Clarke became the first female Black Rod in the position’s 650-year history.

Another tradition sees a Member of the Commons ‘taken hostage’ in Buckingham Palace while the monarch attends Westminster. This dates back to when the monarch and parliament’s relationship was more strained, meaning the King wanted assurances he wouldn’t be harmed while in Westminster.

Last year, Jo Churchill, former MP for Bury St Edmunds and Vice Chamberlain of HM Household, was the hostage.  

The exact content of the King’s Speech is kept fairly secret, but it is understood there will be around 35 draft laws announced.

Sir Keir, who became Prime Minister after Labour’s historic landslide win earlier this month, has said the party’s plans will ‘take the brakes off Britain’. 

The new Government is set to present a ‘packed’ legislative agenda focused on improving living standards by driving economic growth, the first of the Prime Minister’s five ‘missions for national renewal’.

The address is expected to contain more than 35 Bills and draft Bills with an emphasis on improving transport, creating jobs and accelerating the building of houses and infrastructure as Labour seeks to escape Britain’s recent cycle of low growth.

Speaking ahead of today’s State Opening of Parliament, the Prime Minister said: ‘Now is the time to take the brakes off Britain.

‘For too long people have been held back, their paths determined by where they came from, not their talents and hard work.

‘I am determined to create wealth for people up and down the country. It is the only way our country can progress, and my Government is focused on supporting that aspiration.’

Speaking to the Cabinet on Tuesday morning, Commons Leader Lucy Powell said the speech represented ‘a packed legislative agenda and the Government’s determination to return politics to public service’.

With more than 35 Bills expected, Wednesday’s speech will be one of the chunkiest in recent history, second only to 2022 when the Government put forward 38 Bills including several that were carried over from the previous year.

The last time there was a change of government, in 2010, the new administration put forward only 22 Bills.

One of the measures expected in Wednesday’s speech is a commitment to major planning reform to address what Labour sees as a major block to building both houses and vital national infrastructure.

The Bill is likely to involve streamlining the planning process and reintroducing mandatory housing targets, as well as facilitating building on the ‘grey belt’ – green belt land that has previously been developed.

Other Bills expected in the speech include new laws to renationalise the railways by 2029 under a new public body, Great British Railways.

Most existing railway contracts are set to expire by the end of 2025, and while some extend into the 2030s, senior Labour sources suggested the Government could take advantage of break clauses to bring services back into public ownership sooner.

Local authorities will receive more powers over bus routes and the ability to set up their own bus companies once again under the terms of a proposed Better Buses Bill.

An English Devolution Bill, transferring more power away from Westminster, the creation of a national wealth fund, and a boost for workers’ rights through Labour’s ‘new deal for working people’ are also likely to feature.

Sir Keir said: ‘Today’s new laws will take back control and lay the foundations of real change that this country is crying out for, creating wealth in every community and making people better off – supporting their ambitions, hopes and dreams.’

Other measures could include the reintroduction of Rishi Sunak’s proposed ban on anyone born after 2009 buying tobacco, measures to help renationalise the railways and a new, strengthened version of the Renters Reform Bill that sought to end no-fault evictions.

There will also be new legislation on spending rules, giving more power to the Office of Budget Responsibility following the economic turmoil triggered by Liz Truss’s mini-budget in 2022.

Tory leader Rishi Sunak will say the Conservatives will not ‘oppose for the sake of it’, but warn the Government ‘tapped into the public’s desire for change’ during the election campaign and ‘must now deliver that change’.

‘In the national interest, we will serve as an effective opposition. We will not oppose for the sake of it, but when we disagree with what the Government is doing, it is our responsibility as the opposition to say so,’ Mr Sunak will say.

‘What will guide us will be our principles: sound public finances, a belief that people know how to spend their own money better than governments do, that private enterprise – not state intervention – is the key to delivering growth and prosperity. Public services that work for those who need them, an education system that gives everyone the best start in life, secure borders, and a strong national defence.

‘The party opposite tapped into the public’s desire for change. But they must now deliver change: and we on this side of the House will hold them accountable for delivering on the commitments they made to the British people.

‘The Labour Party promised no tax rises on working people and no plans for tax rises beyond what’s in their manifesto, in full knowledge of the public finances. They can’t now claim that things are worse than they thought and renege on these pledges. We will hold the Government to its own promises.’

Speaking ahead of the King’s Speech, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey called for fixing the NHS and social care to be made a priority in Labour’s programme.

He said: ‘Years of chaos under the Conservatives have left us with a stagnant economy and health services in a state of crisis.

‘Millions of people are stuck on NHS waiting lists and struggling to get the care they need to return to work.

‘Fixing the NHS and care would put rocket boosters under economic growth in our country.’

Meanwhile, SNP leader Stephen Flynn urged Labour to include scrapping the two-child benefit cap in its plans.

Describing the decision as ‘an important litmus test’ for the Government, he said: ‘People in Scotland voted for significant and substantial change at Westminster – and that promise must now be honoured, not broken, by the Labour Government.’