John Bercow facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Right Honourable John Bercow
Bercow in 2018
Speaker of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom
In office 22 June 2009 – 4 November 2019
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Prime Minister	Gordon Brown David Cameron Theresa May Boris Johnson
Preceded by	Michael Martin
Succeeded by	Lindsay Hoyle
Shadow Secretary of State for International Development
In office 10 November 2003 – 8 September 2004
Leader	Michael Howard
Preceded by	Caroline Spelman
Succeeded by	Alan Duncan
Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
In office 18 September 2001 – 23 July 2002
Leader	Iain Duncan Smith
Preceded by	Oliver Letwin
Succeeded by	Howard Flight
Member of Parliament for Buckingham
In office 1 May 1997 – 4 November 2019
Preceded by	George Walden
Succeeded by	Greg Smith
Chancellor of the University of Essex
In office 22 July 2017 – 12 November 2021
Vice Chancellor	Anthony Forster
Preceded by	Shami Chakrabarti
Succeeded by	(vacant until 2023), Sarah Perry (2023–)
Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire
In office 25 July 2014 – June 2017
Vice Chancellor	Bill Rammell Rebecca Bunting
Preceded by	The Baroness Howells of St Davids
Succeeded by	Sarfraz Manzoor (2023–)
Member of Lambeth London Borough Council for St Leonard's ward
In office 9 May 1986 – 4 May 1990
Personal details
Born	John Simon Bercow (1963-01-19) 19 January 1963 (age 62) Edgware, Middlesex, England
Political party	None
Other political affiliations	Labour (2021–2022; suspended) Independent (2019–2021) Speaker (2009–2019) Conservative (1980–2009)
Spouse	Sally Illman ​ (m. 2002)​
Children	3
Alma mater	University of Essex (BA)
Signature

John Simon Bercow (born 19 January 1963) is a former British politician. He is best known for serving as the Speaker of the House of Commons from 2009 to 2019. During his time as Speaker, he became famous around the world for his loud calls of "Order! Order!"

Bercow was a Member of Parliament (MP) for the town of Buckingham from 1997 to 2019. He was first a member of the Conservative Party. When he became Speaker, he had to leave his party and become independent, as the Speaker must be neutral.

After he left Parliament in 2019, he joined the Labour Party in 2021 but was suspended a year later.

Early Life and Education

John Bercow was born in Edgware, Middlesex, England. His father was a taxi driver. His family was Jewish, and their original surname was Berkowitz before it was changed to Bercow.

As a young boy, he was a very good tennis player. He even appeared on the children's TV show Crackerjack! in 1975.

Bercow studied government at the University of Essex and graduated in 1985. When he was young, he was part of a right-wing group in the Conservative Party. He later said that joining this group was "utter madness" and that he regretted his views from that time.

After university, he worked in banking and for a public relations company. He also taught public speaking to other young Conservatives.

Political Career

Early Political Steps

In 1986, at the age of 23, Bercow was elected as a councillor in Lambeth, London. He was the youngest deputy group leader in the country at the time.

In 1995, he became a special adviser to government ministers. This meant he gave advice to important politicians like Jonathan Aitken and Virginia Bottomley.

Becoming a Member of Parliament

Bercow in Poland in 2010

After two unsuccessful attempts to get into Parliament, Bercow was elected as the MP for Buckingham in 1997. He won with a large number of votes.

In Parliament, he quickly became known for being a skilled and sharp speaker. He was given important roles in the Conservative Party, which was in opposition at the time. This included being the Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

In 2002, he disagreed with his party's leadership on a new law about adoption. The law allowed unmarried couples, including same-sex couples, to adopt children. Bercow believed MPs should be allowed to vote based on their own conscience, so he voted for the law and resigned from his senior role.

Over time, Bercow's political views began to change. He started to support more liberal ideas, and there were even rumors that he might switch to the Labour Party.

Speaker of the House of Commons

The Speaker is the person who keeps order in the House of Commons. They must be fair to all political parties and make sure debates follow the rules.

How He Became Speaker

Bercow in the Speaker's chair in 2012

In 2009, the Speaker at the time, Michael Martin, resigned. Bercow decided to run for the job. He said he wanted to give more power to ordinary MPs and make Parliament stronger.

On 22 June 2009, Bercow was elected as the 157th Speaker. He was the first Jewish Speaker and the first to be elected using a new voting system. As soon as he was elected, he left the Conservative Party to be politically neutral.

A Modern Speaker

Bercow was known for his modern style. He chose not to wear the traditional court robes that previous Speakers had worn.

He became very well-known for his loud and unique way of shouting "Order! Order!" to quieten down noisy MPs. This made him famous not just in the UK, but around the world.

One of his important projects was supporting the United Kingdom Youth Parliament. He allowed young people to hold their annual debate in the House of Commons chamber, making them the only group besides MPs to do so.

Guiding Parliament Through Brexit

Bercow visiting the Welsh Parliament in 2009

Bercow's time as Speaker is most remembered for his role during the Brexit debates. After the UK voted to leave the European Union in 2016, Parliament had many difficult and passionate debates about how to proceed.

Bercow had to make many important decisions about which topics could be debated and voted on. Some of his rulings were controversial. For example, in March 2019, he stopped the government from having a third vote on its Brexit deal, saying it was against Parliament's rules to vote on the same issue repeatedly.

His actions during this time were seen as giving more power to MPs to challenge the government. While some praised him for defending Parliament, others in the government felt he was not being neutral.

Life After Parliament

Retirement and New Roles

On 9 September 2019, Bercow announced he would retire as Speaker and as an MP. He officially left Parliament on 4 November 2019, after serving for 10 years as Speaker. He was the longest-serving Speaker since World War II.

After leaving politics, Bercow wrote an autobiography called Unspeakable. He also took on roles at several universities, including becoming a professor of politics at Royal Holloway, University of London.

In 2021, he announced that he had joined the Labour Party. He said he did this because he supported their values of equality and social justice.

Complaints About His Behavior

In 2018, while he was still Speaker, some of Bercow's former staff members made complaints about his behavior. They said he had bullied them at work. Bercow denied these claims.

After he left Parliament, a formal investigation was launched. In 2022, an independent panel looked at the evidence and found that Bercow had been a "serial bully."

Bercow disagreed with the findings and called the investigation unfair. As a result of the report, he was suspended from the Labour Party and banned from ever having a pass to enter the Parliament buildings.

Personal Life

Bercow married Sally Illman in 2002, and they have three children. He is a huge fan of Arsenal F.C. and has a season ticket. He is also a lifelong tennis fan and wrote a book about the greatest male tennis players.

Images for kids

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  MPs applaud Bercow as he announces his retirement date in 2019

Honours

Country	Date	Appointment	Post-nominal letters
United Kingdom	2009–present	Member of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council	PC

Scholastic

University degrees

Location	Date	School	Degree
England	1985	University of Essex	First-class honours Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Government

Chancellor, visitor, governor, rector and fellowships

Location	Date	School	Position
England	2014–	University of Bedfordshire	Chancellor
	18 July 2017 – 12 November 2021	University of Essex	Chancellor
	27 January 2017 – present	University of Manchester	Honorary Professor
	4 November 2019 – present	Birkbeck, University of London	Fellowship
	24 January 2020 – present	Royal Holloway, University of London	Professorship of Politics

Honorary degrees

Location	Date	School	Degree
England	2010	University of Essex	Doctor of the University (D.Univ)
	16 March 2013	University of Buckingham	Doctor of Laws (LL.D)
	23 January 2014	De Montfort University	Doctorate
	30 January 2014	City, University of London	Doctor of Science (D.Sc.)

Freedom of the City

Location	Date	Award
England	4 July 2016	Freedom of the City of London (London)

See also

In Spanish: John Bercow para niños