Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons

The Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons is a parliamentary official responsible for order in the House of Commons. The office dates to 1415 and traditionally included responsibility for security. The role is now mainly ceremonial.

The House of Lords also had a Serjeant-at-Arms (the title was often distinguished by the use of hyphens), dating also from the 15th century. His duties were merged in 1971 with those of Black Rod.

Traditionally the post of Serjeant at Arms was filled by a retired military officer, but in 2008 a civil servant, Jill Pay, was selected as the first woman to hold the appointment. At the same time the job was split, with many of the duties transferred to the new post of chief executive.

Ugbana Oyet holds the post.

Duties
The duties of the Serjeant at Arms are partly ceremonial. The Serjeant at Arms carries the mace during the opening of Parliament and is also responsible for maintaining order during debates in the House of Commons, escorting members out of the chamber if ordered to do so by the Speaker.

In rare cases, the Serjeant at Arms may be called upon to enforce the warrants of the Speaker in summoning a witness to testify before a select committee of the house. While serving the warrant and encouraging a witness to attend parliament "the Serjeant or his appointee may call on the full assistance of the civil authorities, including the police." In January 1992, the Serjeant at Arms was employed to summon Ian and Kevin Maxwell, the sons of the disgraced business tycoon Robert Maxwell, to attend an inquiry held by the Social Security Select Committee into the operation of the Mirror Group Pension fund. In November 2018, the Serjeant at Arms was called upon to escort an American businessman, who was staying in London, to the Houses of Parliament because he had documents pertaining to the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal. After being told he could face arrest, fines and imprisonment for failing to comply with a parliamentary order to hand over the documents, the man eventually complied with the request.

Dress
The Serjeant at Arms wears traditional court dress and carries a sword, and is traditionally the only person allowed to be armed (with sword or mace) inside the chamber of the House of Commons.

List of Serjeants at Arms


• 1415–: Nicholas Maundit

• 1610–: Edward Grimston

• Edward Dendy Senior

• c.1645: Edward Dendy Junior

• 1648-1660: Edward Birkhead of Richmond House, Twickenham, an ancestor of Horace Walpole

• 1660–1675: Sir James Norfolk

• 1675–1693: William Bishop

• 1693–1709: Samuel Powell

• 1709–1717: Thomas Wybergh

• 1717–1737: Thomas Spence

• 1737–1762: Wentworth Odiarne

• 1762–1775: Nicholas Bonfoy

• 1775–1805: Edward Colman

• 1805–1811: Francis John Colman

• 1812–1812: John Clementson

• 1812–1835: Henry Seymour

• 1835–1848: Major-General Sir William Gosset

• 1848–1875: Lord Charles James Fox Russell

• 1875–1885: Sir Ralph Allen Gosset KCB

• 1885–1915: Sir Henry David Erskine KCVO

• 1915–1935: Admiral Sir Colin Richard Keppel GCVO KCIE CB  DSO

• 1935–1957: Sir Charles Howard, GCVO DSO

• 1957–1962: Major-General Ivor Thomas Percival Hughes KCVO CB  DSO

• 1962–1976: Rear-Admiral Sir Alexander Gordon-Lennox KCVO  CB  DSO

• 1976–1982: Sir Peter Francis Thorne KCVO CBE

• 1982–1989: Sir Victor Le Fanu KCVO

• 1989–1995: Sir Alan Urwick KCVO, CMG

• 1995–1999: Sir Peter Jennings CVO

• 2000–2005: Sir Michael Cummins

• 2005–2007: Major-General Peter Grant Peterkin CB, OBE

• 2008–2012: Jill Pay

• 2012–2015: Lawrence Ward

• 2015–2019: Kamal El-Hajji BEM

• 2019–present: Ugbana Oyet