Her last visit to Parliament

It will be a day when the death of a British politician is marked with ceremony of a character not seen since the passing of Winston Churchill almost half a century ago.

While officially not a state funeral, to the vast majority who do not trouble themselves with the minutiae of protocol and etiquette it will carry all the hallmarks of a British state occasion.

The funeral procession against the dramatic backdrop of London’s landmarks, the transporting of the coffin on a gun carriage, the involvement of hundreds of soldiers, sailors and airmen, and a service attended by more than 2,000 including former Prime Ministers, senior politicians past and present and international statesmen will be a compelling spectacle and one that is recalled – and debated – for years to come.

Thousands of people are expected to line the route to offer their respects, to protest, or simply to catch a glimpse of a ceremonial occasion with rare parallel in recent memory.

Many more people at home and abroad will witness on television the final journey of a political figure whose recognition around the world has endured long after leaving office.

The procession itself will start at the Palace of Westminster, where Baroness Thatcher’s coffin lay last night in the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft and a service was held for family and political figures.

MPs, Peers and parliamentary staff were allowed into the chapel to pay their respects.

From Parliament, where she led the Conservative Party to majorities in three General Elections,the hearse will carry her coffin past the end of Downing Street, her home as Prime Minister for 11 years.

Leaving Whitehall, Baroness Thatcher’s coffin will be transferred to a gun carriage and taken through central London, passing along Fleet Street – that was once home to some of her biggest champions in the media and staunchest critics – before reaching St Paul’s Cathedral in the heart of the City whose cause she championed.

An eight-strong team of servicemen, including Lance Corporal James Steel, 24, from Ripon, representing the Parachute Regiment, will carry the coffin into St Paul’s. Senior Aircraftman Jamie Straker, 23, of Bridlington, from the Queen’s Colour Squadron RAF will be one of two servicemen holding the caps of the bearers.

Waiting in St Paul’s will be the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, the three surviving former Prime Ministers and international figures including former US Vice President Dick Cheney and former South African President FW de Klerk as well as representatives of around 200 countries – although not Argentina’s ambassador – alongside friends, family, political allies and foes and celebrity faces.

David Cameron will be among those to address the hour-long funeral service where the blessing will be given by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the hymns will include I Vow To Thee My Country and He Who Would Valiant Be.

Parliament will be suspended as the funeral takes place, MPs having agreed to waive Prime Minister’s Questions.

Flags over Government buildings will be lowered to half mast.

Big Ben and the Great Clock will be silenced – an honour last accorded to Winston Churchill on his death in 1965.

But all the formality and ritual that will be on display will not be able to disguise the fact that the British public will be far from united in their attitude to today’s events.

As details have emerged in recent days there has been a sense of unease in some quarters over both the scale and symbolism of the funeral.

Questions have been raised over the involvement of so many members of the politically-neutral Armed Services in the funeral of a politician.

Eyebrows have been raised too over the personal attendance of the Queen herself, rather than a representative of the Royal Family as protocol would normally dictate.

There has also been criticism that gestures such as the silencing of Big Ben are not appropriate for a Prime Minister who, it is argued, divided the nation, in contrast to Churchill, who united the country in its darkest hours.

While those concerns are likely to fade in the aftermath of the funeral, the issue of how the cost will be met is likely to continue in the coming days and weeks.

Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey is just one of a number to demand answers over who is picking up the bill. He is critical of Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude who has suggested police and military costs will not be included when the figure is eventually published.

In a letter to David Cameron, Mr Healey described the move as “indefensible” and said today’s occasion was a “full-scale state funeral in all but name”.

“Now you are dividing the nation again over whether Baroness Thatcher is a Prime Minister whose memory and legacy really deserves a national funeral on such a scale and at such a cost to the taxpayer,” he said.

With a few exceptions, the tone of debate among the political class has remained largely respectful since Baroness Thatcher’s death with even staunch opponents focusing on policy differences and funeral protocol rather than personal attacks.

Most MPs critical of Baroness Thatcher’s legacy chose not to attend last week’s session for tributes in the Commons rather than ambush the occasion to make political points, an example followed by members of the Welsh Assembly yesterday.

Today’s scheduled Leeds City Council meeting was cancelled when the city’s Labour and Conservative groups apparently failed to agree on whether to hold a minute’s silence for Baroness Thatcher.

But small scale, if vociferous, street parties celebrating her demise and the rise of the Wizard of Oz song Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead! in the music charts have shown the level of personal anger, even hatred, some in the wider public feel towards the former Prime Minister.

Just as Baroness Thatcher provoked strong opinions in life, so her death has for some been a trigger for fresh protest over her political legacy.

What remains to be seen today is how many of those decide a funeral is a fitting occasion to vent their anger.

The Metropolitan Police has promised to allow people to exercise their democratic right to protest and it is likely some on the crowd will today turn their backs as the funeral procession passes their position.

Trafalgar Square is expected to be a focal point for demonstrations.

What remains unclear is whether any elements will 
seek to make their views known more vocally or go further still and try and interfere with the procession.

With more than 4,000 officers 
on duty, the police will be well placed to respond, but any disruption will be an ugly scar on what all but Baroness Thatcher’s most vitriolic critics hope will be a dignified occasion.

The scale and spectacle of her funeral will reflect Baroness Thatcher’s impact on a generation.

But the debate over her political legacy will continue long after the last notes of the national anthem, marking the end of today’s events, fade away.

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