Father of the House is a term that has by tradition been unofficially bestowed on certain members of some national legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the term refers to the oldest member, but in others it refers the longest-serving member.
The term Mother of the House is also found, although the usage varies between countries. It is used simply as the female alternative to Father of the House, being applied when the relevant member is a woman.
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The Father of the House is a title that is by tradition bestowed on the senior Member of the House of Commons who has the longest unbroken service.[1] If two or more MPs have the same length of current uninterrupted service, then whoever was sworn in earliest at its commencement, as listed in Hansard, is named Father.
In the House of Commons, the sole mandatory duty of the Father of the House is to preside over the election of a new Speaker whenever that office becomes vacant. The relevant Standing Order does not refer to this member by the title "Father of the House", referring instead to the longest-serving member of the House present who is not a Minister of the Crown (meaning that if the Father is absent or a government minister, the next person in line presides).
The current Father of the House of Commons is Sir Peter Tapsell, Conservative MP for Louth and Horncastle, who began his continuous service from the 1966 general election.
Should Tapsell cease to be a Member of the House of Commons, MPs with continuous service from the 1970 general election will become eligible to be Father of the House. The members with this length of service are: Sir Gerald Kaufman, Kenneth Clarke, Michael Meacher and Dennis Skinner (listed according to the order in which they took the oath after the 1970 election).[2][3]
The Father of the House is not necessarily the sitting MP with the earliest date of first election: Sir Peter Tapsell was first elected in 1959, and is the only remaining 1950s MP, but lost his seat in 1964 and was out of Parliament until 1966; this meant that Alan Williams was Father of the House until his retirement at the 2010 general election by virtue of his continuous service since the 1964 general election. Michael Foot, as the only remaining MP from the 1945 election between 1987 and 1992, was never Father of the House because he was out of Parliament between 1955 and a by-election in 1960. Similarly, though Sir Winston Churchill was first elected in 1900, he did not become Father of the House until 1959 because he lost his seat in 1922, not returning to the Commons until 1924.
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman was simultaneously Father of the House and Prime Minister from May 1907 until shortly before his death in April 1908.[1]
The current Father of the House of Lords is Lord Carrington (Conservative), who became eligible to take his seat on his 21st birthday in 1940 (having succeeded to the title in 1938 while still a minor) and actually first took his seat in October 1945. After the House of Lords Act 1999 removed the automatic right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords, Carrington (along with all former Leaders of the House) was given a life peerage to enable him to continue to sit.
Should Carrington cease to be a Member of the House of Lords, the remaining peers who first sat in the 1940s will become eligible to be Father of the House. There are currently two: Lord Montagu of Beaulieu (sat first on 26 November 1947) and Lord Denham (sat first on 13 December 1949). Both are hereditary peers who were elected to remain in the House under the provisions of the 1999 Act.
The senior life peer by date of creation is Lord Chalfont, who entered the House in 1964.
| Name | Entered House | Became Father | Left House | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Earl of Mansfield | 1840 | ? | 1898 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Templemore | 1842 | 1898 | 1906 | Conservative | |
| The Earl of Leicester | 1844 | 1906 | 1909 | Conservative | |
| The Earl Nelson | 1845 | 1909 | 1913 | Conservative | |
| The Earl of Ducie | 1853 | 1913 | 1921 | Liberal | |
| The Earl of Coventry | 1859 | 1921 | 1930 | Conservative | |
| The Marquess of Huntly | 1869 | 1930 | 1937 | Liberal | |
| The Marquess of Ailsa | 4 June 1872 | 1937 | 1938 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Grantley | 24 May 1878 | 1938 | 1943 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Romilly | 4 August 1920 | 1943 | 1983 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Oranmore and Browne | 26 July 1927 | 1983 | 1999 | Conservative | |
| The Earl Jellicoe | 25 July 1939 | 1999 | 2007 | Conservative | |
| The Lord Carrington | 9 October 1945 | 2007 | Incumbent | Conservative | |
| Name | Entered House | Became Father | Left House | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J. M. Andrews | 1921 | 1949 | 1953 | Ulster Unionist | |
| Cahir Healy | 1925 | 1953 | 1965 | Nationalist (NI) | |
| The Viscount Brookeborough | 1929 | 1965 | 1968 | Ulster Unionist | |
| Sir Norman Stronge, Bt | 1938 | 1968 | 1969 | Ulster Unionist | |
| Terence O'Neill | 1946 | 1969 | 1970 | Ulster Unionist | |
| Brian Faulkner | 1949 | 1970 | 1972 | Ulster Unionist | |
The Parliament of Northern Ireland, including the House of Commons of Northern Ireland, was prorogued in 1972 and abolished completely in 1973 leaving the title of Father of the House defunct.
In Australia, the current member of the House of Representatives with the longest period of continuous service, whether a Minister or not, is known as "Father of the House". Similarly, the current member of the Senate with the longest period of continuous service is known as "Father of the Senate". The longer serving of the two Fathers is called "Father of the Parliament".
As in Britain, these terms have no official status. However, unlike Britain:
Since 1 July 2008, Senator Ron Boswell, who was first elected in 1983, has been the Father of the Senate.
Since 1 September 1998, Philip Ruddock, who was first elected in 1973, has been the Father of the House of Representatives and Father of the Parliament.
The longest-serving member of the House of Commons who is not a cabinet minister is known as the Dean of the House, and presides over the election of the Speaker at the beginning of each Parliament. The same term is used for the equivalent position in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Starting with the Frankfurter Nationalversammlung (Frankfurt Parliament) of 1848, all democratic German parliaments had a Father (or Mother) of the House, usually called Alterspräsident (President by right of age).
Under the current constitution (Grundgesetz) of 1949, the Alterspräsident will preside over the Parliament (Bundestag) at the start of each legislative period.
Following tradition, the Alterspräsident will first ascertain himself that he is the oldest member of the Bundestag by stating his birth date and asking if anyone is present who was born before his date. If no older member of the Bundestag is present (which is usually the case) he will formally declare that he indeed is the Alterspräsident and will start proceedings.
As acting President of the Bundestag (Bundestagspräsident) he delivers the first programmatic speech and oversees the elections of the President of the Bundestag and the Vicepresidents of the Bundestag (Bundestagsvizepräsidenten). He then stands down and yields his power to the newly elected Bundestagspräsident. As the position of Father of the House usually draws a certain public attention, the PDS twice nominated old independents (Stefan Heym in 1994, Fred Gebhardt in 1998) to obtain this office. None of them served a complete term (Heym resigned in 1996, Gebhardt died in 2000). This was considered a manipulation.
| Bundestag | Name | Term | Parliamentary group |
Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1949–1953 | Paul Löbe | 1949–1953 | SPD | |
| 2nd | 1953–1957 | Marie Elisabeth Lüders | 1953–1957 | FDP | stood in for Konrad Adenauer, the oldest member, who refused the office due to his position as Chancellor |
| 3rd | 1957–1961 | Marie Elisabeth Lüders | 1957–1961 | FDP | |
| 4th | 1961–1963 | Robert Pferdmenges | 1961–1963 | CDU/CSU | |
| Konrad Adenauer | 1963–1965 | CDU/CSU | resumed the office after his resignation as Chancellor | ||
| 5th | 1965–1967 | Konrad Adenauer | 1965–1967 | CDU/CSU | died in 1967 |
| William Borm | 1967–1969 | FDP | |||
| 6th | 1969–1972 | William Borm | 1969–1972 | FDP | |
| 7th | 1972–1976 | Ludwig Erhard | 1972–1976 | CDU/CSU | |
| 8th | 1976–1980 | Ludwig Erhard | 1976–1977 | CDU/CSU | died in 1977 |
| Johann Baptist Gradl | 1977–1980 | CDU/CSU | |||
| 9th | 1980–1983 | Herbert Wehner | 1980–1983 | SPD | |
| 10th | 1983–1987 | Willy Brandt | 1983–1987 | SPD | stood in for Egon Franke |
| 11th | 1987–1990 | Willy Brandt | 1987–1990 | SPD | |
| 12th | 1990–1994 | Willy Brandt | 1990–1992 | SPD | died in 1992 |
| Alfred Dregger | 1992–1994 | CDU/CSU | |||
| 13th | 1994–1998 | Stefan Heym | 1994–1995 | PDS | resigned his seat in 1995 |
| Alfred Dregger | 1995–1998 | CDU/CSU | |||
| 14th | 1998–2002 | Fred Gebhardt | 1998–2000 | PDS | died in 2000 |
| Hans-Eberhard Urbaniak | 2000–2002 | SPD | |||
| 15th | 2002–2005 | Otto Schily | 2002–2005 | SPD | |
| 16th | 2005–2009 | Otto Schily | 2005–2009 | SPD | |
| 17th | 2009–2013 | Heinz Riesenhuber | since 2009 | CDU/CSU | |
In the beginning of each Knesset, before the election of a permanent speaker, there is a temporary speaker. In the past it was the oldest member of Knesset, now it is the longest-serving member. Michael Eitan is the most recent Knesset member to serve in this capacity, doing so from February 24 - March 30, 2010.
In the Republic of Ireland, the term Father of the Dáil is an unofficial title applied to the longest-serving Teachta Dála (TD) in the house, regardless of their position. The current Father is the Taoiseach and Fine Gael party leader, Enda Kenny, TD, since the retirement of Séamus Pattison at the 2007 general election. On a number of occasions two or more people have shared the position of Father of the Dáil.
| Name | Entered Dáil | Became Father | Left Dáil | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Fahy | 1918 election | 4 February 1948 | 14 July 1953 | Fianna Fáil | |
| Éamon de Valera | 23 June 1959 | Fianna Fáil | |||
| Gerald Boland | 1923 election | 23 June 1959 | 4 October 1961 | Fianna Fáil | |
| James Ryan | 7 April 1965 | Fianna Fáil | |||
| Patrick McGilligan | 7 April 1965 | Fine Gael | |||
| James Everett | 18 December 1967 | Labour Party | |||
| Thomas McEllistrim | 18 June 1969 | Fianna Fáil | |||
| Frank Aiken | 28 February 1973 | Fianna Fáil | |||
| Paddy Smith | 5 July 1977 | Fianna Fáil | |||
| Liam Cosgrave | 1943 election | 5 July 1977 | 11 June 1981 | Fine Gael | |
| Dan Spring | 11 June 1981 | Labour Party | |||
| Oliver J. Flanagan | 17 February 1987 | Fine Gael | |||
| Neil Blaney | Dec. 1948 by-election | 17 February 1987 | 8 November 1995 | Independent Fianna Fáil | |
| Paddy Harte | 1961 election | 8 November 1995 | 6 June 1997 | Fine Gael | |
| Seán Treacy | 6 June 1997 | Labour Party | |||
| Séamus Pattison | 14 June 2007 | Labour Party | |||
| Enda Kenny[4] | Nov. 1975 by-election | 14 June 2007 | Incumbent | Fine Gael | |
In New Zealand, the term Father- or Mother of the House is an unofficial title applied to the longest-serving MP in the house, regardless of their position. The Father of the House has no official role in Parliament. The current Father of the House in the New Zealand Parliament is Peter Dunne, the leader of the United Future New Zealand, having served continuously since the 1984 general election. The current Speaker of the House, Lockwood Smith, has also served continuously since 1984, but as members are sworn into office in alphabetical order, Dunne by virtue of this has served the longest .
In New Zealand's first elections of 1854, the Bay of Islands electorate was the first to declare the election of a successful candidate, the unopposed candidate Hugh Francis Carleton. In the subsequent General Assembly of 1854, Carleton liked to be known as the Father of the House.
List of Fathers (and Mothers) of the House
| Name | Party | First elected | Became Father | Left Parliament | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Muldoon | National | 26 November 1960 | 28 November 1981 | 17 December 1991 | Prime Minister 1975-84 | |
| Jonathan Hunt | Labour | 26 November 1966 | 17 December 1991 | 30 March 2005 | ||
| Helen Clark | Labour | 28 November 1981 | 30 March 2005 | 18 April 2009 | Prime Minister 1999-2008 | |
| Michael Cullen | Labour | 28 November 1981 | 18 April 2009 | 29 April 2009 | ||
| Jim Anderton | Progressive | 14 July 1984 | 29 April 2009 | 26 November 2011 | ||
| Peter Dunne | United Future | 14 July 1984 | 26 November 2011 | present | ||
In Norway it is the representative of the Storting with longest seniority that is temporary Stortingspresident (speaker). Per Kristian Foss had this position in 2009 until Dag Terje Andersen was elected.
Note: this is a list of longest-serving Finnish MPs; however, before the election of the Speaker, the Finnish Parliament is chaired by the oldest MP, not the longest-serving one.