THE UK Government’s relationship with the Commons Speaker has taken another blow after John Bercow mocked the Chancellor in front of MPs and a senior Government minister questioned the Speaker’s impartiality.
During Treasury Questions, Philip Hammond urged Labour MPs to back Theresa May’s Brexit Plan, saying this was the one “on the table” and they should vote for it.
However, Mr Bercow intervened and, referencing the Government's decision of the day before to pull the debate on the Prime Minister's deal, said: "I just very gently say to the Chancellor…it's quite difficult to vote for something if there isn't a vote."
MPs howled with laughter as the Speaker added: "I'm trying to help him but it's a point that's so blindingly obvious I'm surprised that I have to state it."
Earlier, Andrea Leadsom, the Commons Leader, raised eyebrows when she openly challenged Mr Bercow’s impartiality after he criticised the Government's handling of the postponement of the meaningful vote on the Brexit deal.
On Monday, the Speaker made a pointed address from the chair, warning Mrs May that cancelling the meaningful vote without the agreement of MPs would be "deeply discourteous".
Under parliamentary rules, the PM was able to postpone putting her Withdrawal Agreement before MPs without their approval but he urged her, unsuccessfully, to "give the House the opportunity to express its opinion in a vote whether or not it wishes the debate to be brought to a premature and inconclusive end".
Mrs Leadsom, a leading Brexiteer, who has previously clashed with the Speaker during her time in the role, including during Monday's debate, said: "He's made his views on Brexit on the record and the problem with that, of course, is that the chair's impartiality is absolutely essential."
Asked whether she believed his position was tainted, she told the BBC’s Today programme: "He's made his views known on Brexit...It's a matter for him but nevertheless it's a challenge and all colleagues need to form their own view of that."
In May, Mr Bercow hit the headlines after being accused of calling Mrs Leadsom a "stupid woman" and "f****** useless".
The Speaker admitted using the word "stupid" amid frustration at the Government when it forced a debate on the Grenfell tragedy to be cut short.
In November, they again clashed after Mrs Leadsom continued a private chat as MPs sought clarity on procedure from the chair.
Mr Bercow stopped to wait for the Leader to finish her conversation before asking her directly to respect the House as she continued to turn her back to him. Mrs Leadsom turned to him and smiled but, as the Speaker continued, turned away again to shouts of anger from the Labour benches.
Earlier this year, the Speaker was criticised by Leave campaigners after a "b******s to Brexit" sticker was seen in a car parked in his private parking space at Westminster. It was later reported to have belonged to his wife Sally.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel