Selby and Ainsty MP Nigel Adams recalled “a life of service” from Queen Elizabeth as MPs paid tribute to her in parliament.

The MP spoke of celebrations to mark her various jubilees and the affection held for the monarch both in Britain and overseas, who visited ‘hundreds’ of countries.

He told the House: “The Queen also visited Selby in my constituency, alongside her beloved husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, in 1969, when they came to present Maundy money to 43 men and 43 women at Selby abbey; 10,000 people lined the town’s streets that day.”

Mr Adams told the Saturday gathering he met the Queen twice at Buckingham Palace and he was nervous.

“All my nerves were calmed, however, once I had been greeted by that beautifully warm smile and her welcoming words. That warmth, and that smile, has comforted our nation over the decades, through good and challenging times. The word “constant” has been widely used; that is exactly what Her late Majesty was. It is difficult to imagine life without her, and it feels as though we have all lost a grandmother.”

The MP said Boris Johnson was absolutely right to call her Elizabeth the Great.’

“She was a truly great monarch—in some ways, the greatest monarch.”

Mr Adams added: “If I may paraphrase a small bear from darkest Peru, “Ma’am, thank you for everything."