I would point to two particular aspects of the Exclusions Crisis.

Given that Conrad Earl Russell used to be of the belief that our own party - the Whig party, and then the Liberal party - started as a consequence of the Exclusion Crisis of 1679 and therefore was founded as a party aiming at excluding James II from the throne, I should, perhaps, join in the apologies that we have heard today about the gunpowder plot and other events, and perhaps even apologise for Titus Oates as well.

Given that Earl Conrad Russell used to be of the belief that our own party - the Whig party and the Liberal party - started as a consequence of the Exclusion Crisis of 1679 and therefore was founded as a party aiming at excluding James II from the throne, I should, perhaps, join in the apologies that we have heard today about the gunpowder plot and other events, and perhaps even apologise for Titus Oates as well.

I am not going to go back to the Exclusion Crisis and Lord Halifax's wonderful speech to prevent the Exclusion Bill going through, but that was a very early example of the House of Lords taking a strong constitutional stance, protecting the rights of an hereditary monarchy to follow the correct path and-the bonus from my point of view-being very pro-Catholic.

The Tory and Whig parties, which dominated the politics of the 18th century, were forged in the fire of the Exclusion Crisis of 1681, some aspects and implications of which have already been touched on today.