His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

I invite the House to rise and observe a minute’s silence in memory of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

We meet today to pay tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh, who has been at the side of Her Majesty the Queen for more than seven decades, giving his unwavering support both as a husband and as a consort.

Described by Her Majesty as “my strength and stay”, for most of us Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, has always been there, providing this nation with a reassuring presence. Whether he was attending with such dignity the formal occasions when the Queen attended Parliament for the state opening, or visiting different places within the UK or in an overseas country, his support and loyalty were always clearly displayed. He was the longest serving consort in history and the oldest partner of a serving monarch. He never let the Queen down.

His passing also marks the end of an era. He was one of the last surviving heroes of the second world war, serving as an officer in the Royal Navy with distinction, and was heavily decorated for his bravery and long service. A qualified pilot, he gained his helicopter wings, became admiral of the fleet for over 50 years and helped to design the royal yacht Britannia. He visited troops in Iraq, travelled with the Queen throughout the Commonwealth and overseas territories, and stepped down from official royal duties only at the age of 96.

Outspoken, with a great sense of humour, he was not afraid of talking openly about issues that were close to him. He will be remembered for his loyal devotion to service and his leadership of hundreds of causes close to his heart. Perhaps his finest achievement was the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, which has helped millions of young people around the world to achieve their full potential as team members and future leaders in their chosen fields. As a moderniser and public reformer, he promoted the latest in engineering and design. As a pioneer in the World Wildlife Fund, he travelled widely to secure public interest in nature and its protection.

His sporting interests were wide-ranging. As a sailor, he regularly attended Cowes week for the regatta. He was a cricket enthusiast and player. He also took part in horse riding and performed as a top polo player. He was a winner for Britain, too, at carriage driving, which he took up later in life.

In March 2011, the Duke accompanied the Queen to Parliament for the diamond jubilee celebrations. I had the pleasure of introducing him to groups of Members waiting to greet him. I remember his interest in ties that Members were wearing, particularly if they showed a connection with the armed forces. He also had a special ability to put people at ease.

As we reflect on a life well lived, we should not forget the wide-ranging achievements of Prince Philip: the ambassador, serviceman, scientist, artist, naturalist, committee chairman, traveller and loyal supporter of the United Kingdom, the overseas territories and the Commonwealth. But we should always remember him as a family man: a devoted husband, a father, a grandfather and a great-grandfather. He was, without doubt, the father of the nation. He will surely be missed and impossible to replace.

I beg to move,

That an Humble Address be presented to Her Majesty expressing the deepest sympathies of this House on the death of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the heartfelt thanks of this House and this nation for his unfailing dedication to this Country and the Commonwealth exemplified in his distinguished service in the Royal Navy in the Second World War; his commitment to young people in setting up the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, a scheme which has touched the lives of millions across the globe; his early, passionate commitment to the environment; and his unstinting support to Your Majesty throughout his life.

It is fitting that on Saturday, His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh will be conveyed to his final resting place in a Land Rover which Prince Philip designed himself, with a long wheelbase and capacious rear cabin, because that vehicle’s unique and idiosyncratic silhouette reminds the world that he was above all a practical man, who could take something very traditional, whether a machine or, indeed, a great national institution, and find a way, by his own ingenuity, to improve it, to adapt it for the 20th and 21st centuries.

That gift for innovation was apparent from his earliest career in the Navy. When he served in the second world war, he was mentioned in dispatches for his

“alertness and appreciation of the situation”

during the battle of Cape Matapan, and he played a crucial role in helping to sink two enemy cruisers. But it was later, during the invasion of Sicily, that he was especially remembered by his crewmates for what he did to save their own ship. In a moment of high danger, at night, when HMS Wallace was vulnerable to being blown up by enemy planes, he improvised a floating decoy, complete with fires to make it look like a stricken British vessel, so that the Wallace was able to slip away and the enemy took out the decoy.

In supporting the Humble Address, I would like to echo the remarks made by the Prime Minister and, on behalf of my party, to come together today in appreciation of a life well lived, a life of service and of duty, and a life that shaped modern Britain and provided much needed stability to our national story.

My thoughts, first and foremost, are with Her Majesty the Queen and the royal family. Prince Philip was a man of many titles—Duke of Edinburgh, Lord High Admiral, a royal Commander, Baron of Greenwich—but above all he was a much loved father, grandfather and great- grandfather. To Her Majesty the Queen he was not only her beloved husband, but, in her words, her “strength and stay” for seven decades, so it is right that, today, this House and the country come together to pay tribute not just to a man, but to the virtues he personified, and to his ceaseless optimism about the country Britain can be and what the British people can achieve.

The life of Prince Philip was extraordinary, lived in a century on fast-forward and a time that saw world war, a cold war, the fall of empire, 20 Prime Ministers, and the invention of the television, the internet, artificial intelligence and technology so extraordinary it might have seemed to a lesser person as if from another world. Throughout that time, the monarchy has been the one institution in which the faith of the British people has never faltered. As we have seen once again in recent days, the royal family has a connection with the British people that runs as deep today as it did when Philip Mountbatten married the then Princess Elizabeth in 1947. That is not by chance; it reflects the quiet virtues, the discipline and the sacrifices we commemorate today.

My own connection to the Duke of Edinburgh began long before I entered this place. Like millions of other children, I—aged 14—started the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme, or the DofE, as we called it. My first activity was to volunteer at a local mental health hospital where, unbeknown to me at the time, my late grandad would later be admitted. My final activity was wandering around Dartmoor in a small team, with a compass and a map in the pouring rain, frantically trying to find our way. Mr Speaker, if that doesn’t prepare you for coming into politics, nothing will.

I now call the Father of the House.

Prince Philip would have laughed at the Leader of the Opposition’s jest about finding a compass and comparing that with politics. The Leader of the Opposition, following the Prime Minister’s excellent speech, also spoke about the titles that the Duke of Edinburgh held. One was “the Maharaja of Not Very Much”. That is a translation of a title given to him by Sir Reggie Bennett MP when, at the Thursday Club, Prince Philip volunteered to join the Imperial Poona Yacht Club, to which I will return later.

There have been fair and full tributes in many of our papers. I pay tribute to the journalists, who, from a standing start have managed to go on providing interesting reading. I mention, not as the best but as some of the most recent examples, articles by Alice Thomson and Libby Purves in The Times today.

For those who think that only the House of Commons is having such a sitting, I point out that the House of Lords has had some really good speeches including those by, to mention just a few, Lord Boyce, Lord Alderdice, Lord Janvrin and Lord Dholakia. I hope that what we say here will be of interest to those who pay attention to proceedings in Parliament.

In your House, Mr Speaker, Prince Charles observed to George Thomas, later Lord Tonypandy, that if the Duke of Edinburgh or he never said anything interesting, they were accused of being dull, and if they were not dull, they were accused of being controversial. Each was willing to lead on issues that were not already fashionable or dominant among popular concerns. In 1952, on the death of his father-in-law, Prince Philip became patron of the Industrial Society, which followed on from the Duke of York camps. That then developed No. 3 Carlton House Terrace, for a time called Peter Ranch House, which is now known as Prince Philip House and is the headquarters of the Royal Academy of Engineering. In developing the fellowship of engineers and later the Royal Academy, Prince Philip gave attention and paid tribute to the successful endeavours of many people who should be considered as important as those who studied economics, politics or the classics.

Let me begin by echoing the warm and thoughtful words of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, and, indeed, the Father of the House, who have spoken before me.

Since the news emerged last Friday of Prince Philip’s death, the time has been filled with genuine sorrow right across these islands. For myself and for the people throughout Scotland, our thoughts and prayers remain with the entire royal family, but most especially with Her Majesty the Queen. For most people, the response and the reaction have been very simple and purely human. We collectively grieve for a wife who has lost her husband, a mother who has lost her life partner and her constant companion after a remarkable 73 years of marriage.

In the past few days, across our institutions and across the media, there has been a very public marking and mourning of the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh. These tributes have come from every corner of the world. I am very conscious, though, that the scale of public commemoration does not diminish the depth of private grief. At the very heart of this is a family grieving the loss of a beloved husband, a father, a grandfather and a great-grandfather—a man who was at the very centre of their family life. As with every death, following the funeral, that loss and absence will be felt all the more. It is right that we seek to remember and respect that loss and the need for private mourning in the days, weeks and months ahead.

When it comes to reflecting on the life of Prince Philip, there is no shortage of material. His was a remarkable life packed full of experience and involvement spanning diverse communities and continents. That life and those experiences were made possible by probably his most defining trait—a devotion to duty.

Already today in this Chamber and across the airwaves for the past few days, there have been great insights into that long life and the period of history in which he had a presence or a part. From military service to the promotion of environmental causes or his patronage of more than 800 organisations, there is a long and lasting legacy on which to reflect. It would be impossible to encapsulate all of it in any remarks so instead I will focus my remarks on the Duke’s deep connection to Scotland. That connection came before and went way beyond a royal title that contained our capital city of Edinburgh. It was a connection that stretched right across his entire life from childhood to old age. As a child, he attended school at Gordonstoun. It was there that he established many of his interests and hobbies that would stay with him. In those early years, he made his mark as an athlete in cricket and in hockey, captaining the school teams and becoming head boy of the school.

I join with the Prime Minister and everyone across this House in sending my heartfelt condolences to Her Majesty the Queen on the death of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip. Our thoughts and prayers are with Her Majesty and the whole royal family.

In recent days, there have been many tributes to Prince Philip: some from those who knew him well, some from those who had barely met him, and some from those who had never met him, but whose lives he had touched. I had the privilege of meeting him and having a number of conversations with him. He was a truly remarkable man; a man of so many talents. We have heard some of them referred to already today: a distinguished naval officer, an inventor, an innovator, a designer, a painter, a sportsman, and so much else.

What always struck me when he spoke, when I was having those conversations with him, was not just the incredible breadth and wide range of interests that he had, but the depth of knowledge that he had about each of those interests. He did not just dip into a subject; he did not pick something up because it was fashionable. He was deeply interested, he cared, and he understood the importance of getting to know the issues that he was involved in. He was indeed a man ahead of his time, particularly in the areas of the environment and conservation, but that was not a passing whim. He deeply loved the natural world; he understood nature; and he was passionate about wanting future generations to be able to enjoy and benefit from the natural world, too.

I remember, on my first visit to Balmoral as Prime Minister, Prince Philip driving me and my husband around the estate and talking to us about it. It was as if he knew every single inch of it. He talked about the ancient Caledonian forest, about the birds, many of which were protected, about the animals and plants on the estate, about the changes he had seen over the years, and about what was needed to ensure that the environment could be protected and enjoyed by future generations. He was indeed a man ahead of his time. He showed his deep knowledge, but he was also an immensely practical person.

We will now hear from the Mother of the House, the right hon. and learned Harriet Harman.

I am grateful for the opportunity to add my tribute to the powerful speeches that have already been made to celebrate the life and role of the Duke of Edinburgh. For more than 70 years, he was at the heart of the royal family, that most historic and traditional of British institutions. Yet, as has been said, in many ways he was ahead of his time.

He was ahead of his time on the environment. This year the UK will host the 26th United Nations climate change conference, amidst the recognition here and globally of its importance. Yet more than five decades ago, he was urging us, with clarity and foresight, to understand how all living creatures on this planet are interdependent. These views were so much ahead of their time that they were met by some with derision.

He was ahead of his time on young people, with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme, recognising the interconnection of physical and mental wellbeing as a route for young people to develop to their full potential. One of the many success stories of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is the work that goes on at Westminster House youth club in my constituency of Camberwell and Peckham. It gets more black and minority ethnic young people through the award than almost anywhere else. Many of those young people have had a difficult start in life or have not thrived at school, yet through the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award they find a route to self-confidence and success.

The Duke of Edinburgh was ahead of his time as a husband. One of the remarkable things about Prince Philip is that he chose, in his marriage, to put himself second and make his central role in life that of supporting his wife in her role as the Queen. He sought never to eclipse her, only to support her. Way back half way through the last century, that was profoundly counter-cultural. The expectation was that to be a man was to be head of the family, and particularly in the public domain it was the man who would play the leading role, and the wife who would support him. If that—sadly—still remains largely true today, how much more of an iron rule it was 70 years ago. His decision to give up what would have been a glittering career in the Navy, and to make it his duty to support his wife in her role, took him into uncharted territory and left him exposed. For if he was not the head of the family, what did that make him? There was no reassuring recognition that he was no less of a man for what he did in putting the Queen first, and himself second. It takes a remarkable man to be a leader, but an even more remarkable man to support a woman leader, and that is what Prince Philip did.

I am very grateful indeed to have the opportunity to place on the record, on behalf of my constituency, the huge appreciation that we all share for the life and service of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. We also place on the record our condolences to Her Majesty the Queen, and to all the royal family, about which much has already been said. The bottom line is that we are talking about a father, a grandfather, a great-grandfather, and most of all, a devoted husband.

It is inevitable on these occasions that there will be a degree of repetition, but I wish to return to the award scheme to which the Duke of Edinburgh gave his name. At the weekend I spoke with David Walker who, for 30 years, was chairman of the Thanet award scheme. He received his gold award in 1966 at Holyrood from the Duke of Edinburgh. I also spoke with Stephen Dyke from east Kent. Stephen received his gold award this year by post—inevitably, because of the circumstances we face. I said to Stephen, “Weren’t you disappointed?”, and he said, “No. It didn’t matter who gave it to me; what mattered was the achievement and the fact that I won the award.”

David and Stephen, generations apart, echo the thoughts and sentiments of so many of my young constituents and those represented by colleagues in the House, who have been through the bronze, silver and gold awards. To a man and a woman, they all say, “It has changed my life.” As Stephen said to me, “There is nothing—nothing—that I feel I cannot now achieve.” We in this House owe it to the memory of the Duke of Edinburgh, who gave his name to the scheme, to ensure that it is not allowed to wither on the vine but goes forward, prospers and moves from strength to strength.

It has already been said that the Duke of Edinburgh was way ahead of his time in his concern for wildlife and habitat, and that is absolutely true. Many of us on both sides of the House take a keen interest in those issues now; I only wish we had all been listening to him 50 years ago, because we might not be where we are.