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
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives Jim Cope was the presiding officer. While impartial, the Speaker does not usually quit the membership of his or her party – as is traditional Westminster convention. The only two speakers to have not been formally a member of a party were Sir Frederick Holder (who resigned from the Free Trade Party upon taking the role) and Peter Slipper (who resigned from the Liberal Party the day after his election to the chair). On the other hand, the Speaker is not an active political figure like the Speaker of the United States House