Sir Lindsay Hoyle

Before we come to Prime Minister’s questions, I would like to pay tribute to former colleague Lord Alan Haselhurst, who died this week. Although we come from opposite sides of the Pennines, and the aisle, Alan served this House initially as the MP for the old Lancashire seat of Middleton and Prestwich from 1970 to 1974, before he represented Saffron Walden from 1977 to 2017. He was also my immediate predecessor as Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Ways and Means from 1997 to 2010. He was a distinguished and respected parliamentarian, serving on numerous Committees during his time in the House, as well as playing a leading role with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. Friends will know that Alan was mad about cricket. Along with my father Doug, he was a prominent and long-serving officer of the all-party parliamentary group on cricket, and I know Alan took his passion to the next level with his many novels about the sport. In 2018, he was appointed as a life peer, serving in the House of Lords until he retired at the end of 2024. I am sure that Members across the House would like to join me in sending our condolences to Lord Haselhurst’s wife, Lady Angela, as well as his children, grandchildren, family and friends, who are very much in our thoughts today.