Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom) Commons. Their names are inscribed in gold leaf around the upper walls of Room C of the House of Commons Library. The three most recent Speakers have been notable for a series of firsts. Betty Boothroyd, elected in 1992, was the first woman Speaker. Michael Martin, elected in 2000, was the first Roman Catholic Speaker since the Reformation. John Bercow, elected in 2009, is the first Jewish Speaker. By convention, Speakers have traditionally been addressed in Parliament as "Mr Speaker", and their deputies as "Mr Deputy Speaker", regardless of their gender or their usual title. Betty Boothroyd was, at her
Women in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom are to be male. In the 2015 general election, 191 women were elected, making up 29% of the House of Commons; up from 141 and 23% before the election. As elected in the 2010 general election. A total of 42 female ministers have held cabinet positions since the first, Margaret Bondfield, in 1929. Tony Blair’s 1997 Cabinet had five women and was the first to include more than two female ministers at one time. The highest number of concurrent women Cabinet Ministers under Tony Blair was eight (36 per cent), under Tony Blair (then a record) from May 2006 –