You may speak - whoever you are

Mar 26 2008 By Jon Walker

THE Speaker of the House of Commons is supposed to know the name of every MP and recognise them instantaneously.

But with 646 of them milling around Westminster, it can be quite a challenge.

So perhaps the Speaker, Michael Martin, cannot be blamed for forgetting Birmingham MP John Hemming's name.

When Mr Hemming (Lib Dem Yardley) tried to take part in a debate, the Speaker was reduced to calling him "the honourable gentleman on the Liberal Democrats Benches" before finally remembering who he was.

Mr Hemming charitably tried to make a joke out of the incident, telling the Speaker that he was, after all, "very small and insignificant".

* ANOTHER small victory for John Spellar, the Black Country MP who is campaigning to take posh mineral water off the Commons menu. He has convinced Parliament's officials to consider supplying tap water to MPs taking part in committee meetings.

Each year, the Commons gets through 105,957 litres of bottled water. It's shipped on to London from across the country -even though perfectly good water is available straight out of the tap.

Much of the bottled water is then poured into big glass jugs and placed on tables, which means MPs don't even see the bottles.

Mr Spellar is campaigning for a more sensible policy, arguing that transporting bottled water is bad for the environment and a huge waste of money.

"This is a major environmental issue and a substantial cost issue," he told colleagues.

But things move slowly in the Commons. The relevant committee is shortly expected to make a decision - more than 12 months after first considering his proposal.

* WHEN President Sarkozy of France meets the Queen during his state visit today, he will be confronted with reminders of the difficult history between our two nations.

For example, the Foot Guards at Windsor Castle, where a state banquet is to be held, will be wearing bearskin caps - a tradition that began only after the British defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.

The Grenadiers were so impressed with the way the French Imperial Guard were dressed that they decided to copy them.

But Birmingham MP Lynne Jones (Lab Selly Oak) has signed a Commons motion which says fake fur would do the job just as well. It reads: "The bearskin caps worn by British military personnel have no military significance and involve unnecessary cruelty."