LAWMAKERS PLAY IT SAFE WHILE CASTING VOTES

LONDON Hundreds of British lawmakers spent over an hour in kilometre-long queues through the ostentatious corridors and halls of the Palace of Westminster on Tuesday, casting their first ever socially-distanced votes.

The government has ditched the coronavirus-induced measures introduced in April and May that tore up centuries of tradition by allowing remote voting and debates by video conference.

On Tuesday, lawmakers were required to attend in person and join a queue, spaced two metres apart.

They voted 261-163 in favour of the government’s plan to end the so-called hybrid parliament and restore a system that requires all those who wish to vote to attend in person.

“Voting while enjoying a sunny walk or whilst watching television does democracy an injustice ... We ask members to vote in person for a reason: because it is the heart of what parliament is about,” House of Commons leader Jacob Rees-mogg said, pictured.