Bullying in Commons leads to calls for Speaker Bercow to go
decisions and she has to make a decision in the context of needing our support, and we will hold her to her promises.
“Stanley Johnson’s remarks could be considered quite hurtful for Troubles victims’ families.
“I think it is a rather flippant way of describing what has been a very, very difficult situation in Northern Ireland, which has been subject to 30 years of terrorism.”
Labelling Mr Johnson Sr “irresponsible”, Mr Wilson claimed that EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar had been “equally insensitive regarding the sensitivities of unionists around the border and sovereignty issues”.
“I don’t think Mr Johnson Sr is any less insensitive than the EU side of the negotiations have been,”
he said. “Inter- ventions by a nonentity are less important than interventions by people who have a role in making choices and who can influence the outcome.”
Mr Wilson added that he and his party were not expecting to hear any more from the Prime Minister or from the Brexit negotiations for the rest of this week.
SDLP policing and justice spokesperson Dolores Kelly called on Mr Johnson Sr to withdraw his comments, which she branded “insulting and offensive”.
She said: “One wonders if this is well thought out or designed to court controversy and keep him in the limelight.
“The contribution this makes could not be described as helpful, and it is almost making a joke out of what happened here.
“To be so flippant and say this in the context that he has is quite insulting and offensive.”
Mrs Kelly said that Mr Johnson Sr should have been “a lot more respectful”.
“Any informed person knows that the Northern Ireland Office has just completed an extensive consultation on the legacy of the past, which is something that we are still finding very challenging 20 years on from the Good Friday Agreement,” she continued.
“Over 3,500 people lost their lives in the Troubles — a huge number for such a small area.
“He should be a lot more respectful and aware of how the words he uses can cause offence.”
Mrs Kelly called for Mr Johnson Sr to withdraw his “absolutely nonsensical comments”.
She added: “I would call for him to withdraw the remarks — they are offensive, hurtful and insulting.”
Pressure: John Bercow SPEAKER John Bercow was told the “fish rots from the head” as MPs lined up to call for him to quit after an independent probe laid bare the bullying culture in the Commons.
Mr Bercow announced that he wants complaints about bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct in the Commons to be investigated by an outside body.
But he is facing intense pressure to stand down over his leadership on the issue, as well as allegations he bullied officials — claims he strongly denies.
Mr Bercow was expected to quit next summer after steering Brexit legislation through the Commons.
A spokeswoman for the Speaker’s Office said: “The Speaker has made no announcement about his leaving date. He was elected by the House in 2017 for the course of the parliament. In the event he has anything to say on his future plans, he will make an announcement to the House first.”
High Court judge Dame Laura Cox lifted the lid on a toxic environment in Westminster, that included staff having their bottoms and breasts touched in an atmosphere fuelled by alcohol.
Her report found a culture of “deference, subservience, acquiescence and silence” had allowed the mistreatment of staff in the House of Commons to thrive.
In the report, Dame Laura said it was “difficult to envisage” how the reforms needed could be delivered under the current senior House administration.
During a Commons debate on the report, during which Mr Bercow remained in the chair, MPs said it was time for him to quit.
Anne Main, Tory MP for St Albans, said: “It’s the old adage that the fish rots from the head, and the leadership failings that have been highlighted in this report are extremely worrying. The important thing is nobody need fear to be able to call into account those however senior they are if they have failings.
“If this report has identified senior leadership failings... no one should be involved in this process who has been potentially linked to being part of the problem in this process.”
❝ I think it is a rather flippant way of describing what has been a very, very difficult situation here