Bercow faces bullying inquiry after Commons shake-up

SPEAKER John Bercow may finally be investigated over allegations of bullying after a powerful Commons body last night voted to overhaul Parliament’s complaints system.

The House of Commons Commission has confirmed that it will seek to implement proposals put forward in a damning report on Westminster’s toxic culture, which called for historic allegations against MPS to be investigated.

The decision means that Parliament’s widely criticised behaviour code will be scrapped and an independent grievance scheme will be amended “as quickly as possible”.

It also opens the door for victims of alleged historic bullying to bring forward complaints, including those who have levelled claims against Mr Bercow and a number of other MPS.

The Speaker has in recent months come under growing pressure to resign over allegations that he bullied two former employees, which he has always denied. The commission’s announcement follows the publication of Dame Laura Cox’s report earlier this month, which called for radical changes to Parliament’s complaints procedures in order to end the culture of “deference, subservience, acquiescence and silence” which had been allowed to go unchecked.

Dame Laura also suggested that it was difficult to see how the “seismic changes” required could be achieved while Mr Bercow remained in place. The commission last night said that it recognised the “scale of the problem” and that the “depth of hurt caused is beyond dispute”.

Amy Leversidge, assistant general secretary of the FDA civil service union, said the announcement was a “significant step in the right direction” although “the devil will be in the detail”.