200th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF CHARLES DARWIN

Early day motion 377, tabled 12 January 2009 by Ashok Kumar (Labour). Signed by 79 members.

That this House notes the extraordinary achievements of Charles Darwin; notes that 2009 marks both the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species; welcomes proposals for the creation of a Darwin Day in recognition of the ground-breaking work of the British scientist responsible for the theory of evolution by natural selection; and calls for Darwin's birthday, 12 February, to be designated a public holiday in honour of one of the fathers of modern science and one of Britain's greatest, if not the greatest, scientific minds.

Signatures by party: Labour 50, Liberal Democrat 20, Conservative 6, Independent 1, Scottish National Party 1, Social Democratic and Labour Party 1.