Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will miss this week’s round of questions in the Commons as the opposing leaders attend the funeral of former speaker Betty Boothroyd.
Lady Boothroyd, a former Labour MP, died last month at the age of 93 having shattered traditions by becoming the first female speaker of the house in 1992.
She held the position for eight years and represented the West Bromwich constituency between 1973 and 2000 before sitting in the Lords for over two decades.
Current speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle described Lady Boothroyd as “one of a kind” after her death and both party leaders will pay tribute at a ceremony in Thirplow, Cambridgeshire.
It means deputies Dominic Raab and Angela Rayner will step in at the despatch boxes for the session.
The questions will also be the first Commons event to take place since Humza Yousaf became Scotland’s new First Minister.
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