英國下議院長約翰·伯考 | 辭去議長一職演講

I would like to make a personal statement to the House. At the 2017 election I promised my wife and children, that it would be my last. This is a pledge that I intend to keep.

各位同僚：我想發(fā)表一份個(gè)人聲明。2017年大選時(shí)，我便向妻兒承諾，這是我最后一次競選議長。如今，我將遵守這一諾言。

If the House votes tonight for an early General Election, my tenure as Speaker and MP will end when this Parliament ends. If the House does not so vote, I have concluded that, the least disruptive and most democratic course of action would be for me stand down at the close of business on Thursday, 31 October.

若下議院今晚投票表決，支持提前大選，那我作為議長及議員的職責(zé)，將隨本屆議會(huì)的終止而結(jié)束。若投票結(jié)果反之，我已得出結(jié)論，秉持讓負(fù)面影響最小化、民主精神最大化的原則，我將于10月31日周四結(jié)束工作后，正式卸任。

Least disruptive because that date will fall shortly after the votes on the Queen's speech, expected on 21 and 22 October. The week also after that may be quite lively, and it would be best to have an experienced figure in the Chair for that short period.

之所以說負(fù)面影響最小，是因?yàn)樵撊掌?，就在女王議會(huì)開幕演講后不久，預(yù)期10月21日或22日。且接下來那一周，辯論可能較為激烈，由一位經(jīng)驗(yàn)豐富的議長，在短時(shí)期內(nèi)主持議事大局，或許是最佳選擇。 

Most democratic, because it will mean that a ballot is held when all Members have some knowledge of the candidates. This is far preferable to a contest at the beginning of a Parliament when new MPs will not be similarly informed, and may find themselves vulnerable to undue institutional influence. We would not want anyone to be whipped senseless, would we?

之所以說，民主精神最大化，是因?yàn)?，在議員對(duì)議長候選人了解更為深入后，再進(jìn)行投票選舉，這比在議會(huì)開幕之初便進(jìn)行議長選舉，要更為可取。因?yàn)樾律先蔚淖h員并不清楚狀況，也更容易受到過多的制度性影響。我們都不希望議員收到投票指令，被黨鞭左右，對(duì)吧？

Throughout my time as Speaker, I have sought to increase the relative authority of this legislature, for which I will make absolutely no apology to anyone, anywhere, at any time. To deploy a perhaps dangerous phrase, I have also sought to be the backbencher's backstop.

在我任職議長期間，我一直竭盡所能，強(qiáng)化這一立法機(jī)構(gòu)的權(quán)威性。對(duì)此，我心中無愧，無悔。無論何時(shí)何地，對(duì)何人何事，我都坦坦蕩蕩。說句可能有些危險(xiǎn)的話，我一直致力于成為后排議員的“堅(jiān)強(qiáng)后盾”。

I could not do so without the support of a small but superb team in Speaker's House, the wider House staff, my Buckingham constituents, and above all my wife, Sally, and our three children, Oliver, Freddy and Jemima.

 我之所以能做到這一切，首先要?dú)w功于議長背后團(tuán)隊(duì)強(qiáng)有力的支持，還有下議院全體員工，和白金漢區(qū)所有選民。尤其要感謝我的妻子薩莉，還有我們的三個(gè)孩子，奧利弗、弗雷迪和杰邁瑪。

From the bottom of my heart, I thank them all profusely. I could also not have served without the repeated support of this House, and its Members past and present. This is a wonderful place filled overwhelmingly by people, who are motivated by their notion of the national interest by their perception of the public good, and by their duty, not as delegates, but as representatives, to do what they believe is right for our country.

我要發(fā)自肺腑地對(duì)他們的支持，表示深深感激。此外，我還要感謝下議院長期以來支持我的各位議員，無論是前任議員，還是現(xiàn)任議員。這個(gè)偉大的地方，聚集著一群偉大的人。他們懷揣著對(duì)國家的使命感來到這里，為國家利益和公共福祉殫精竭慮。他們并非作為會(huì)議代表，履行職責(zé)；而是作為人民代表，踐行著有益于國家的行動(dòng)。

We degrade this Parliament at our peril. I have served as a Member of Parliament for 22 years, and for the last 10 as Speaker. This has been, let me put it explicitly, the greatest privilege and honour of my professional life, for which I will be eternally grateful. I wish my successor in the Chair the very best fortune, in standing up for the rights of Hon. and Right Hon. Members individually and for Parliament institutionally as the Speaker of the House of Commons. Thank you.

任意剝奪議會(huì)尊嚴(yán)，這是極其危險(xiǎn)的。我任下議院議員已有22年，近10年來一直擔(dān)任議長。我發(fā)自肺腑地說一句，這是我職業(yè)生涯中，無上的榮光，至上的榮耀。我會(huì)畢生心懷感恩。  希望我的繼任者，未來一切順利。望其作為下議院議長，堅(jiān)定捍衛(wèi)每一位議員的權(quán)利，堅(jiān)定捍衛(wèi)議會(huì)的權(quán)威與尊嚴(yán)。謝謝。