For nearly eight hours on Monday – notably longer than parliament spent debating the final terms of Britain’s post-Brexit trade deal with the EU – the House of Commons united to praise the late Prince Philip.
The debate had an eerie quality. The House of Commons, the small debating chamber inside the grander and older Palace of Westminster, held the sole sign of life across the estate, which continues to feel like a ghost town even as activity returns to British high streets this week: politicians’ staff are absent, only a handful of MPs are welcome in the chamber at any time, and most journalists are working from home.
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