Speaker: Big Ben can bong for Brexit
Sir Lindsay Hoyle outlines his plan to make the Commons a quieter, more pleasant place – and a behavioural model for the country
THE new Commons Speaker has said he would allow Big Ben to ring out to mark Brexit, as he pledged not to let his political views influence decisions.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the great bell in Parliament’s Elizabeth Tower should be rung on Jan 31 if MPs “wish to do that”, stating that the UK’s formal departure from the EU will be a “significant moment”.
His comments mark a clear break from the approach of his predecessor,
John Bercow, who, since stepping down has described Brexit as Britain’s biggest mistake since the Second World War. Last year, a committee chaired by Mr Bercow blocked a bid for Big Ben to chime on the UK’s originally intended exit date of Mar 29 2019.
More than 50 MPs have signed an early day motion calling for Big Ben to ring out at 11pm on Jan 31.
Sir Lindsay, who was formally installed as Speaker last week, told The
Sunday Telegraph: “If the House wants to do it, the House will do it. I’m not sure whether it will be at that stage in the building work that it can ring … but if that’s what the House wants, I’m not going to stand in the way because of my view. My view doesn’t matter.
“It will be a significant moment and people will do different things, and if the House wishes to do that, so be it. I certainly won’t personally block anything.”
The 160-year-old tower that houses the bell is currently undergoing a £60million restoration, and its regular chimes have been silenced to protect the hearing of construction workers.
Sir Lindsay, who was also required to be impartial in his previous role as deputy speaker, has never declared how he voted in the 2016 referendum. At a hustings in November, he was the only one of eight candidates to decline to reveal how he voted. His constituency of
Chorley, Lancs, voted Leave by a majority of almost 57 per cent.
Mr Bercow was accused of helping to facilitate an anti-Brexit “coup” with rulings that allowed backbenchers to force the Government’s hand. In one case, pro-EU MPs seized control of the Commons order paper to require the Prime Minister to seek a delay to Brexit.
Dame Eleanor Laing, another of Mr Bercow’s deputies, suggested he had “strayed” from the rule of law in decisions he took over Brexit.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle is sitting at the head of a long wooden table that now extends the length of the Speaker’s official study, overlooking the Thames. The new Speaker had asked that the table be moved from the office he occupied as John Bercow’s deputy to ensure more “inclusive” meetings with MPs and officials. His predecessor, according to aides, invited senior attendees to sit round a smaller, square table while more junior figures had a separate one.
“I know it sounds daft but this table makes a difference,” Sir Lindsay says. “It’s about bringing people with me and making everybody feel important. I want it inclusive, not exclusive.”
The change is one of the ways in which Sir Lindsay is breaking away from the approach of Mr Bercow, who was beset by allegations of bullying – which he denied – and of taking key decisions behind closed doors.
Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph, Sir Lindsay sets out how he intends to take a more “hands on” approach outside of the chamber, including by focusing on the well-being of staff. His plans include funding a doctor for staff and MPs. Inside the chamber, Sir Lindsay, 62, says he will opt for silent stares at disruptive MPs, over “bawling from the chair” – a characteristic associated with his predecessor.
He also intends to restore the length of Prime Minister’s Questions to 30 minutes, after Mr Bercow often let the weekly session run for as long as an hour. Setting out his desire to create a more “inclusive” atmosphere, Sir
Lindsay says: “Everybody who works on this estate, whether it’s the police or the press, whether it’s [staff] in the tearoom, we all work together in this village. I want to make this village work for all of us.
“There’s been lots of allegations, senior staff bullying other staff, MPs being abused, press being abused. I want to work on that and try and make sure that everyone can work safely and feel they can work without fear.”
In 2014 Mr Bercow found himself at the centre of a row after he attempted to install a senior official from the Australian Senate in the £200,000-a-year role as Commons Clerk, the House’s most senior official. The move was blocked by backbenchers and Sir Lindsay appears to suggest that he wants future Clerks recruited from within the Commons.
“I don’t care whether it’s somebody who is a tour guide, the fact is there is a job at the top of this House called the Clerk, and if that person who becomes a tour guide wants to make it to the top there will be ladders.”
Sir Lindsay’s focus on the health and general well-being of staff will include ensuring that MPs’ caseworkers, researchers and secretaries are offered support to cope with the stresses of their roles, which can involve hearing details of crimes such as child abuse and rape.
The Speaker, who revealed last week that he had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, says: “We have thousands of people who work here, why haven’t we got a doctor? The Commons currently has a nurse available for MPs and staff, but “it’s not really the service we need”.
Mr Bercow spent hours chairing Commons debates to be present for key moments relating to Brexit. Sir Lindsay intends to spend more time outside of the chamber, allowing his deputies to take his place more often. “My style is probably a little more hands on outside the chamber where the [previous] Speaker, I would suggest, was more hands on in the chamber. I will have three deputies that are doing the job .”
Sir Lindsay, who has always declined to confirm how he voted in the Brexit referendum, indicates that he plans to be less political than his predecessor. More than 50 MPs have signed a motion calling for the bells in Big Ben’s clock tower to ring out to mark Brexit on Jan 31. A committee chaired by Mr Bercow blocked a similar move in March. But Sir Lindsay says: “My view doesn’t matter. If the House wishes to do that, so be it. I won’t personally block anything.”
In recent years politics has taken on an unpleasant tone, inside and outside the Commons. “I’m hoping this is the new beginning,” says Sir Lindsay. “I tried to keep that temperature down. Someone kept shouting. It’s not about me bawling from the chair, I just kept looking, and there was a lot of respect to that. I will try and do that.
“I think that bawling, shouting, intimidation, aggressive [behaviour] in the chamber is reflected in society. If we’re a good example, I hope that’ll be reflected in society as well.’’
Sir Lindsay’s proposals for the chamber include a weekly “Questions of Relevance” slot for MPs to ask a senior minister about pertinent topics. The new session would help to avoid MPs using “Urgent Questions” to drag ministers to the Commons to answer questions on matters that are “relevant” but not “urgent”.
On Thursday he was the subject of approving posts on social media after wearing his Commons security pass on a lanyard around his neck throughout the State Opening of Parliament and Queen’s Speech. It was no oversight.
Having taken personal charge of Commons security, moving the brief over from his deputy role, Sir Lindsay wanted to set an example that there should be no exceptions to the rule that parliamentary passes should be worn at all times. He has been irked by MPs who consider themselves sufficiently recognisable not to need to wear passes. Mr Bercow was seldom seen wearing his own.
One of the reasons for Sir Lindsay retaining the security brief is to continue to lead a project to partpedestrianise Parliament Square, to greater protect parliamentarians and staff going in and out of the estate.
Sir Lindsay is spending Christmas at home in Chorley, Lancs, with his wife Catherine, his eldest daughter, and their grandchildren, who all joined him in his official residence in Parliament last week. Last Sunday was the two-year anniversary of the death of Natalie Lewis-Hoyle, 28, Sir Lindsay’s younger daughter, which he has described as “the hardest thing” with which to cope. On Wednesday he will make his annual Christmas Day visit to his local hospital.
Also joining Sir Lindsay and Mrs Hoyle in Speaker’s House were Boris, their pet parrot, and Patrick, the couple’s cat – two members of a menagerie that also includes Gordon, named after the former prime minister, and Betty, a terrier.
Next year, when Sir Lindsay makes Speaker’s House his permanent London base after safety works, he hopes to be joined by Maggie, his tortoise.
“Maggie will be a great addition to the terrace out there, walking along. I think she’ll make a big impact. It’s not often people see a three-stone tortoise walking around Parliament.”
‘It’s not about me bawling from the chair. I just kept looking, and there was a lot of respect to that, and I will try and do that’