MPs will put aside the escalating situation in Northern Ireland and the ongoing global pandemic to embark upon a marathon session of tributes to Prince Philip in parliament today.
No other Commons business will be conducted on Monday, with MPs set to spend seven and a half hours praising the Duke of Edinburgh until 10 o’clock at night.
Jon Stone, policy correspondent at The Independent, pointed out that this is “significantly more parliamentary time” than what was allocated to debating Boris Johnson’s final Brexit trade deal – which was given just five hours in December.
At the time, Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the Commons, said the five-hour debate was appropriate because “we have now been discussing this subject for four, five, six or perhaps nearly 50 years”.
The Prince passed away on Friday, aged 99.
MPs were called back early today to discuss the matter, with the Easter recess originally set to end on Tuesday.
The tributes will kick off from 2.30pm in the afternoon on Monday with opening statements from Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer, as well as Lib Dem leader Ed Davey and SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford.
In a statement, the House of Commons authorities said: “The House of Commons will sit at 2.30pm on Monday 12 April for tributes to HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.”
Related: What you missed while everyone was talking about Prince Philip
