The conduct of the Speaker during the SNP’s Opposition Day Motion on Gaza was very much in the spotlight last week, prompting a large number of constituents to contact me expressing concerns about what they saw as a worrying break from longstanding parliamentary convention.
I was in the Commons on Wednesday evening when proceedings descended into chaos – due to the Speaker’s mishandling of Labour’s amendment to the SNP’s Opposition Day Motion, allowing Labour to hijack what should have been another party’s motion. By convention and as confirmed by a letter to him from the Clerk of the House of Commons, the Speaker should have selected the SNP motion for a vote before proceeding to allow a vote on any amendments.
Instead, the Speaker unilaterally decided, against the clear advice of his own officials, that MPs would first vote on Labour’s amendment to the SNP motion – following reports of an imminent rebellion among Labour MPs and alleged threats from Labour on the Speaker to replace him after the general election unless he selected their amendment for a vote.
Crucially, in his statement apologising to the House later that evening, the Speaker said his decision was primarily motivated by violent threats made against MPs.
This for me is the fundamental reason why I no longer have confidence in his role as Speaker: He has given a very clear message that threats of violence and abuse against MPs can change what happens in Parliament.
As legislators, we need to be free and able to speak our minds in Parliament without fear or favour. This is vital to our ability to represent our constituents effectively. Instead, the Speaker told the baying mob that you can threaten an MP and change how Parliament works. I am afraid this simply is not acceptable in our democracy.
I have therefore signed a motion expressing no confidence in the Speaker. Heeither
succumbed to pressure to assist the Labour Party or given into threats of
violence – indeed I believe it was likely a combination of the two – neither of
which represents a valid reason to alter longstanding parliamentary protocol in
such a drastic way to undermine our democracy.
I also believe Sir Keir Starmer has much to answer for due to his alleged part
in influencing the Speaker, and I hope he will be giving a full account of his
actions to the House this week.
The withdrawal of the whip from Lee Anderson MP over the weekend also captured the attention of some constituents. Lee was wrong to accuse Sadiq Khan and the senior Labour leadership of being under the control of Islamists without offering any evidence to support his claim.
In doing so he missed a far more important point, which is the left’s apparent tolerance and in some cases encouragement of extreme elements of all backgrounds taking to the streets to openly call for the abuse and intimidation of our democracy while causing illegal disruption to the public.
These groups include Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion, and a number of pro-Palestinian marches in London of late, some of which were hijacked by militant Islamists expressing support for the actions of Hamas and calling for the destruction of the state of Israel, including projecting the antisemitic and arguably genocidal slogan “from the river to the sea” on to the side of Big Ben. The Speaker cited security threats posed by these violent extremists to MPs as the reason behind his decision to change Commons procedures on Wednesday.
No MP deserves to be intimated or harassed in the course of their work. In recent days many of my colleagues from both sides of the House have spoken bravely and openly about receiving death threats to them and their families as becoming part of the norm of working in Parliament. Last week also saw several so-called protestors affiliated with Greenpeace charged with criminal damage following their attempt to illegally invade the Prime Minister’s home in North Yorkshire in August.
Let me be very clear, I support the right to peaceful protest. This is why I supported legislation introducing by the Government enshrining the right to peaceful protest in statute, while bringing forward measures to protect the public from illegal and violent protests.
Emotions often run high in politics and people rightly want to have their say on important matters facing the country and the world. But there is a growing sense that a small but significant minority are trying to subvert the democratic process through violent means. This cannot be condoned and I will continue to call for our hard-won democracy to be protected in Parliament.
As ever, if I can be of assistance on any matter, my office
is available for any constituents needing help, advice or guidance – tel: 01726
829379 or email: office@stevedouble.org.uk
