Hansard

It is my privilege to move the motion of congratulations to Her Majesty the Queen on the occasion of her golden jubilee and, in doing so, to pay tribute to her work over the years and to the significant contribution that she has made to the society in which we live.

Fifty years ago, this was a very different country and a very different United Kingdom. Seven years had passed since the end of the second world war and, in 1952, national identity cards and the utility clothing scheme came to an end. This was a country that was coming to terms with the pain and damage of a war that had cost so much. It was a country that was coming to terms with the impact of that war on attitudes and expectations and that was taking the early steps to rebuild the economy and to improve the quality of life of its citizens.

Today our economy is more than three and a half times larger than it was in 1952. Productivity has more than doubled and the number of women working has risen by two thirds. Our country has changed in other important ways, too. Significant medical advances, improvements in our diet, the increased choices that are available to us and our standard of living have driven down infant mortality by a remarkable 79 per cent. Life expectancy has risen by more than eight years for both men and women and medical technology and the growing skill of our health workers has brought us the keyhole and transplant surgery that we now take as routine but that in 1952 were unheard of. The illness and disease that were commonplace in 1952—tuberculosis, smallpox and polio—have largely been eradicated by national inoculation programmes.

The 50 years since the Queen's accession have brought change and progress in every aspect of our lives—changes that our parents and grandparents could not, and did not, imagine. There has been change in the work that we do and how we do it. There has been progress in our health and education. Fifty years ago, no one had orbited this planet or set foot on another. Today, we have our first space-travelling tourist. Fifty years ago, television was a novelty that very few families had seen. Indeed, the first real rise in the number of televisions available was the result of ordinary people wanting to watch the coronation of Her Majesty in 1953. Today, we have more than one television per household, video recorders and players, digital versatile discs, mobile phones, palmtops and—curse it though we do—the pager.

The progress of democracy has continued, too. Here in Britain and in this Parliament we have evidence of the significant progress that has been made in our democratic arrangements. We have moved from a United Kingdom that in 1952 still had colonies around the world to a United Kingdom that is playing a critical role both in a democratic European Union and in a Commonwealth of nations that have moved through terrible years of bloodshed towards prosperity, increased tolerance and mutual support.

I remember clearly the speech that Her Majesty made when opening this Parliament. She spoke of the trust and faith that she had in the Scottish people and in devolution. Her gift of the mace is a permanent symbol of that faith. The Queen drew confidence from the respect and admiration for Scotland that exists throughout the United Kingdom. She also reflected on the grit, determination and humour that characterised the contribution of Scots to the life of the United Kingdom. It was clear that Scotland holds a special place in her affections and those of her family.

Throughout the 50 years of massive and significant change that I have described, Her Majesty the Queen has provided this country and the Commonwealth with a constancy of purpose, a stability and a clarity of leadership that have proved invaluable. No one is immune from change. At different times in our private and public lives, all of us find the changes that we face difficult and challenging. For Her Majesty the Queen, it can be no different. However, by holding fast to the values of public service, commitment to duty, responsibility and compassion for others, she has shown that we can not only manage significant change, but embrace it and build from it renewed understanding and commitment to achieving our goals.

Today in the Parliament, it is important for us to reflect on the Queen's achievements over the years, to recognise the important and valuable contribution that she has made to our lives and the lives of people here and across the world and to congratulate her on the part that she has played in leading this country into a new century.

I move,

That the Parliament congratulates Her Majesty the Queen on the occasion of Her Golden Jubilee; expresses its gratitude for Her Majesty's outstanding public service and steadfast dedication to duty over half a century of immense change; affirms the respect that is held for Her Majesty the Queen in Scotland, and looks forward with anticipation to the continuation of that long and close association on the occasion of Her Majesty's Golden Jubilee tour of Scotland later this month and Her visit to the Parliament in Aberdeen on 28 May.