Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Royal Proclamation read to mark the dissolution of Parliament

Major Peter Oweh read the document aloud in a public ceremony on the steps of The Royal Exchange at the Bank junction in London.

Will Durrant
Friday 31 May 2024 13:52 BST
A Royal Proclamation is read on the steps of the Royal Exchange in the City of London (PA)
A Royal Proclamation is read on the steps of the Royal Exchange in the City of London (PA) (PA Wire)

The City of London’s Common Cryer and Serjeant at Arms has read the Royal Proclamation for dissolving Parliament ahead of the General Election.

Major Peter Oweh read the document aloud in a public ceremony on the steps of The Royal Exchange at the Bank junction in London, a tradition to follow the dissolution of Parliament, which took place yesterday.

Parliament will sit again after the General Election, which will take place on Thursday, July 4.

While Parliament is dissolved, neither the House of Commons nor the House of Lords will sit, and there are no MPs until a new 650-strong set is voted in.

In the proclamation, authorised by the King at a meeting of the Privy Council, Charles “do hereby dissolve the said Parliament accordingly”, a reference to the 58th Parliament which first sat on December 17, 2019 – before the UK’s formal withdrawal from the European Union, the Covid-19 pandemic and the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

The proclamation also makes provision for MPs and peers to meet again in Westminster on Tuesday July 9, the week after the General Election.

The State Opening of Parliament and The King’s Speech will follow on Wednesday July 17.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in