Boothroyd takes her seat in the Lords

With the minimum of fuss and ceremony, Betty Boothroyd, the former speaker of the House of Commons, took her seat in the House of Lords yesterday to loud cheers from fellow peers.

With the minimum of fuss and ceremony, Betty Boothroyd, the former speaker of the House of Commons, took her seat in the House of Lords yesterday to loud cheers from fellow peers.

Baroness Boothroyd of Sandwell, as she will now be known, was sponsored by the Labour veterans 90-year-old Baroness Castle of Blackburn and 83-year-old Lord Healey.

The two former cabinet ministers accompanied Miss Boothroyd during the walk to the dispatch box, where she swore a 15-second oath of allegiance to the Queen.

Dressed in a red jacket and skirt, complete with a dazzling gold brooch depicting Parliament's portcullis symbol, she confirmed her new title after the customary handshake with the Lord Chancellor,Lord Irvine of Lairg, on the Woolsack.

The Lords was packed with former ministers to witness the ceremony, but Lady Boothroyd confessed outside the chamber that "this is just another day for me.

"I'm having no party. This to me is the inevitability of gradualness. I haven't had a party before or after, this is just another day," she said.