The term Speaker is usually the title given to the presiding officer of a country's lower house of parliament or congress (i.e., the House of Commons or House of Representatives). A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. ... The debating chamber or hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels. ... A congress is a gathering of people, especially a gathering for a political purpose. ... In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ... House of Representatives is a name used for legislative bodies in many countries. ...

In most cases a speaker is elected from amongst the members of the assembly by the members, and no whips are allowed in the selection. Nonetheless, a speaker from the ruling party is usually chosen. In politics, a whip is a member of a political party in a legislature whose task is to ensure that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires. ...

In many nations, especially those with the Westminster System of government, the position of Speaker, modelled after the British office, is an official charged with enforcing procedural rules. The speaker decides who may speak and has the powers to discipline members who break the procedures of the house. Ideally, the speaker in a Westminster-derived legislature is politically neutral and is not concerned with substantive issues. In the event of a tie, the speaker is permitted to vote, but only according to established conventions. The Westminster System is a democratic system of government modelled after that of the United Kingdom system, as used in the Palace of Westminster, the location of the UK parliament. ...

Despite being an impartial position, the Speaker in a Westminster system has to stand for re-election if they wish to stay. In the Republic of Ireland the Speaker (Ceann Comhairle) is deemed to have been elected if they seek re-election; in the United Kingdom it is a constitutional convention that no major party will put up a candidate against the 'Speaker seeking re-election'. The Ceann Comhairle is the chairperson or speaker of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the parliament (Oireachtas) of the Republic of Ireland. ... A constitutional convention is an informal and uncodified procedural agreement that is followed by the institutions of a state. ...

Often the speaker performs his duties in a non-partisan manner, but in the United States, the Speaker is the most powerful position in the United States House of Representatives and participates in legislating. The House of Representatives is the larger of two houses that make up the U.S. Congress, the other being the United States Senate. ...

Some nations have a ceremonial president of their lower house of parliament instead of a speaker. It is very rare for an upper house to have a speaker. For example, the House of Lords in the United Kingdom has a Lord Chancellor and upper houses in Australia have presidents. President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, universities, and countries. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor and in former times Chancellor of England, is one of the most senior and important functionaries in the government of the United Kingdom. ...

See also

• Speaker of the British House of Commons
• Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons
• Speaker of the Canadian Senate
• Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
• Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives
• Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
• Ceann Comhairle (Speaker of the Irish Dáil)
• President of the National Assembly of Quebec
• Speaker of Lok Sabha (House of the People, India)
• Speaker of the Sejm, Poland