Queen’s Speech Delayed As DUP Talks Continue

The Queen’s Speech - in which the government sets out its legislative programme - has been delayed for a few days, the BBC understands.

The set-piece event had been due to take place on Monday 19 June.

The Conservatives are negotiating with the Democratic Unionist Party to get support for their minority government after losing their Commons majority in last week’s general election.

Labour said the delay showed the government was “in chaos”.

The Queen’s Speech is written by the government and presents an outline of its planned legislation for the next Parliamentary session.

BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said the decision to delay it revealed an “ambiguity” about what would go in it - with several manifesto pledges expected to be watered down or dropped - but also the need for the Tories to “nail down” DUP support.

A defeat for its Queen’s Speech would be tantamount to a vote of no confidence in the new minority government, he said.

One of the reasons for the delay is also believed to be because the speech has to be written on goat’s skin parchment paper, which takes a few days to dry - and the Tory negotiations with the DUP mean it cannot be ready in time.

Although it is rare for a Queen’s Speech to be delayed, when the Conserva- tives and Lib Dems formed a coalition government in 2010, it did not take place until 20 days after the general election while in 1992 nearly a month elapsed between polling day and the government announcing its new programme.

Theresa May will face questions later from her backbenchers for the first time since Thursday’s election.

They are expected to raise concerns about her leadership style, and press for more details on talks with the DUP.

Mrs May’s new cabinet is also meeting for the first time after a reshuffle.

Earlier Brexit Secretary David Davis predicted some parts of the Tory manifesto would have to be “pruned” following the election result.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Davis said that while the Tory election campaign had been disappointing, Mrs May was a “formidable prime minister” and accused people speculating about her leadership of “the absolute height of self-indulgence”.

But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has accused Mrs May of “squatting” in No 10, telling the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show on Sunday that the country “cannot go on with a period of great instability”.

On Sunday evening the PM finalised her cabinet with a small reshuffle, with Michael Gove returning to a ministerial role as environment secretary.

Mr Gove, who took on Mrs May for the party leadership after David Cameron quit, was sacked by the PM in her reshuffle in July last year.

The Conservatives went from 331 seats to 318 in the general election, while Labour increased its number of MPs from 232 to 262.