Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. John Simon Bercow is a British politician who has been the Speaker of the House of Commons in the United Kingdom since June 2009. Prior to his election to Speaker he was a member of the Conservative party. Bercow was born in Middlesex into a Jewish family and graduated from the University of Essex in 1985. In his youth, Bercow was active in the Conservative Party and was a member of several right-wing groups within the party. He served as a councillor from 1986 to 1990 and unsuccessfully contested seats in the 1987 and 1992 General Elections.