It’s John Barkow! ‘Brave and talented’ police dog Poppy is given the Speaker’s chair during security sweep of the Commons
- ‘Brave’ police dog Poppy was given the Speaker’s chair in the House of Commons
- The spaniel, age five, was doing a regular security sweep of chambers on Sunday
- Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle was ‘honoured’ to meet the explosives detection dog
- Poppy was awarded a ‘canine OBE’ for her work in the 2017 London terror attack
A ‘brave and talented’ police dog, who has been awarded a ‘canine OBE’, was given the Speaker’s chair in the House of Commons during a routine security sweep.
Speaker Lindsay Hoyle met Poppy the explosives detection dog while she was doing a regular sweep of the Commons and Lords chambers.
Sir Lindsay even granted the five-year-old spaniel the honour of sitting in his chair after meeting her.
Speaker Lindsay Hoyle met Poppy the explosives detection dog (both pictured) while she was doing a regular sweep of the Commons and Lords chambers on July 19
Sir Lindsay let the five-year-old spaniel sit on his chair (above) and said Parliament are ‘so lucky’ to have ‘Poppy and all her canine colleagues’ keeping people safe
He said he felt ‘honoured’ to meet Poppy and her handler Pc Spalding, calling the duo a ‘brave and talented double act’.
Sir Lindsay added: ‘We are so lucky to have police dogs searching Parliament every day to keep us safe.
‘It’s only when you hear about the escapades of Poppy and all her canine colleagues that you appreciate the vital work they do to protect us from harm.’
Poppy and Pc Spalding were called to London Bridge on June 3, 2017, when three attackers drove a van into pedestrians. A knife attack was then launched nearby at Borough Market.
Poppy and her handler Pc Spalding (pictured) were called to London Bridge on June 3, 2017, when three attackers drove a van into pedestrians and a knife attack was then launched at Borough market
Poppy was honoured with a PDSA Order of Merit – the animal equivalent of an OBE – for her efforts seeking out potential explosives in the 2017 terror attack at London Bridge
Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, killed eight people and injured 48 others in the van and knife attack.
Poppy, a explosives detection dog, was brought to search the area after the attack took place.
The brave spaniel was honoured with a PDSA Order of Merit – the animal equivalent of an OBE – for her efforts seeking out potential explosives.
Pc Spalding said: ‘Poppy, as ever, was very eager, despite having been out all day, and she went into buildings, clearing them for the armed officers.
‘Even though we clocked up a marathon 30-hour shift, she was still happy to carry on. She is amazing and I put my trust in her 100%.’