The Speaker of the House of Commons’ pet parrot Boris has taken to squawking ‘order order’ and ‘lock the doors’ on the London to Lancashire train.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who took over as speaker from John Bercow in November, drives or takes the train up to his constituency in Chorley, North west England, every week.
His wife Catherine, tortoise Maggie, cat Patrick, rottweiler Gordon and terrier Betty usually join him in the journey north, where the couple spend their weekends.
But as soon as Sir Lindsay takes his seat on the train, his parrot has taken to screeching ‘lock the doors’ – to the surprise and confusion of the other passengers.
He told The Times: ‘I’ll put the parrot down and he’ll start shouting things like “lock the doors. Lock the doors” and people on the train start looking around saying who is shouting lock the doors?
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who took over as speaker from John Bercow in November, drives or takes the train up to his constituency in Chorley, North west England, every week with his wife Catherine and their animals (pictured)
‘They can see I am not speaking but there’s this parrot in my box going “order order. Lock the doors”.’
He said his wife ‘deliberately’ put the parrot in front of the television while he was in the chamber to teach him the phrases.
The speaker shouts ‘order, order’ to keep control of the house during a debate, and asks the door keepers to ‘lock the doors’ to the division lobbies eight minutes after calling a vote in the chamber.
Sir Lindsay was first elected to Parliament in 1997 and previously ran a textiles and printing business.
Sir Lindsay said his wife ‘deliberately’ put the parrot in front of the television while he was in the chamber (pictured) to teach him the phrases
It comes after Sir Lindsay met Poppy the explosives detection dog (both pictured) while she was doing a regular sweep of the Commons and Lords chambers on July 19
It comes after a ‘brave and talented’ police dog, who has been awarded a ‘canine OBE’, was given the Speaker’s chair in the House of Commons during a routine security sweep.
Sir Lindsay met Poppy the explosives detection dog while she was doing a regular sweep of the Commons and Lords chambers.
He even granted the five-year-old spaniel the honour of sitting in his chair after meeting her.
Sir Lindsay let the five-year-old spaniel sit on his chair (above) and said Parliament are ‘so lucky’ to have ‘Poppy and all her canine colleagues’ keeping people safe
He said he felt ‘honoured’ to meet Poppy and her handler Pc Spalding, calling the duo a ‘brave and talented double act’.
Sir Lindsay added: ‘We are so lucky to have police dogs searching Parliament every day to keep us safe.
‘It’s only when you hear about the escapades of Poppy and all her canine colleagues that you appreciate the vital work they do to protect us from harm.’
Poppy and Pc Spalding were called to London Bridge on June 3, 2017, when three attackers drove a van into pedestrians. A knife attack was then launched nearby at Borough Market.
Poppy and her handler Pc Spalding (pictured) were called to London Bridge on June 3, 2017, when three attackers drove a van into pedestrians and a knife attack was then launched at Borough market
Poppy was honoured with a PDSA Order of Merit – the animal equivalent of an OBE – for her efforts seeking out potential explosives in the 2017 terror attack at London Bridge
Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, killed eight people and injured 48 others in the van and knife attack.
Poppy, a explosives detection dog, was brought to search the area after the attack took place.
The brave spaniel was honoured with a PDSA Order of Merit – the animal equivalent of an OBE – for her efforts seeking out potential explosives.
Pc Spalding said: ‘Poppy, as ever, was very eager, despite having been out all day, and she went into buildings, clearing them for the armed officers.
‘Even though we clocked up a marathon 30-hour shift, she was still happy to carry on. She is amazing and I put my trust in her 100%.’