Speaker's Procession

Picture of the Speaker's procession

The Speaker’s procession takes place at the start of each day’s session of Parliament.

The Speaker's Procession

Every day the Legislature meets, the Sergeant-at-Arms, carrying the Mace over his shoulder, leads a procession along the hallways of the Legislative Building to the Chamber. The Speaker, Clerk, Table Clerks and two Legislative Pages follow the Sergeant-at-Arms. Once in the Chamber, the Mace is placed on the Clerk’s table with the crown end pointing towards the Government. The Sergeant-at-Arms then bows to the Speaker, and proceeds to his desk near the entrance of the Chamber. The Speaker then reads the prayer for the day, and the session commences.

It is believed that the tradition of the procession began in England several hundred years ago at a time when the Speaker needed to be protected from threatened attacks. The Sergeant-at-Arms was assigned to march the Speaker in to and out of Parliament to safeguard him from these threats.

Watch a Speaker's Procession (internal link).