Bercow ‘covered up Vaz bullying claims’

John Bercow has used his official powers to hush up information about the behaviour of disgraced Labour MP Keith Vaz.

The Commons Speaker used parliamentary privilege to block a freedom of information request from the BBC.

The corporation’s journalists were trying to find out information about Vaz’s behaviour on official trips abroad, during which he was accused of breaking parliamentary rules and bullying staff.

An initial request was refused, but the rules allow appeals to be referred to the information commissioner, and then to the courts.

Bercow used privilege to block the request under Section 34(3) of the Freedom of Information Act.

This allows the Speaker to issue a ‘certificate’ to prevent the request to avoid ‘infringement of the privileges of either House of Parliament’.

The Speaker is the only authority who can block requests for information about the House of Commons, where Vaz sits as an MP. The move by Bercow, who is himself accused of bullying former staff, will not go down well with MPs who have called for him to stand down.

Tory MP Andrew Bridgen said: “What we’ve got is a Speaker of the House of Commons who is accused of bullying and denies it protecting his close friend Keith Vaz, who is accused of bullying and denies it. You can only imagine what the general public will make of this. It is clear that the Speaker protects his dwindling band of friends.”

BBC Newsnight has claimed that clerks raised concerns that Vaz did not abide by all the rules for trips, which are paid for by taxpayers. The MP denies the claims.

Former clerk Jenny McCullough accused the Leicester MP of bullying her and forcing her out of her job following a trip to Russia and Ukraine in 2008.

Bercow has been accused of bullying Kate Emms, his former private secretary, out of her job. She was reportedly diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after less than a year working for him.