1992 Speaker of the British House of Commons election willing nominee) since William Morrison defeated Major James Milner on 31 October 1951, although Geoffrey De Freitas had been nominated against his wishes in the 1971 election. The candidates were Betty Boothroyd (Labour), MP for West Bromwich West and Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons from 1987 to 1992, and Peter Brooke (Conservative), MP for City of London and Westminster South and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1989 to 1992. The election was presided over by the Father of the House, Sir Edward Heath, and was conducted by means of a conventional parliamentary motion, originally to elect
Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom) re-elects Speakers who desire to continue in office for more than one term. Theoretically, the House could vote against re-electing a Speaker, but such an event is extremely unlikely. The procedure for electing a Speaker has changed in recent years. Until 1971, the Clerk of the House of Commons became temporary Chairman of the House. As the Clerk is never a Member, and therefore is not permitted to speak, he would silently stand and point at the Member who was to speak. However, this procedure broke down at the election of a new Speaker in 1971 (see below) and had