‘Shameful’ scenes as protesters refuse to leave Commons
Opposition MPS hijack closure of Parliament with sit-in, scuffles and a patriotic sing-song
IT WAS a chaotic end to an at times farcical day in Parliament.
Labour had once again refused to back a general election – despite Jeremy Corbyn’s repeated calls for one – when proceedings moved to the suspending of Parliament.
The prorogation ceremony is usually an uncontroversial affair, but opposition MPS were determined to hijack proceedings to show their frustration at Parliament being closed for five weeks.
Thankfully for them, John Bercow, the Commons Speaker, is not averse to a touch of the theatrics.
Mr Bercow had already provoked frustration on Monday when he carved 90 minutes out of a busy Commons schedule to hear repeated tributes to his time in the chair.
When Lloyd Russell-moyle, the Labour MP, told him of a plan concocted to disrupt the prorogation ceremony, Mr Bercow did nothing to scupper the move.
Mr Russell-moyle has only been in Parliament for just over two years, but the Brighton Kemptown MP has already earned a reputation for eyecatching stunts. In December last year, he broke with convention and seized the ceremonial mace placed on the table in the middle of the chamber to express his outrage at Theresa May’s decision to pull the first vote on her Brexit deal.
On that occasion, Mr Bercow suspended the 32-year-old for the rest of the day’s sitting, but in the early hours of yesterday morning he was much more amenable to a planned protest.
Minutes before Black Rod was due to enter the Commons to summon the Speaker and other MPS to the Lords in order to close Parliament, Mr Russellmoyle told Mr Bercow he planned to fling himself across the Speaker’s legs to prevent him from leaving the Commons.
“I can’t encourage you to do that, but if you want to there is little I can do to stop you,” Mr Bercow said.
“I did it to respect the system of precedent,” Mr Russell-moyle later told The Daily Telegraph, citing how the tactic was used in 1629 in an attempt to stop Charles I closing down Parliament.
Other MPS, including Labour’s Clive Lewis and the Greens’ Caroline Lucas, positioned themselves next to the Speaker’s Chair to add to the protests, complete with homemade signs saying: “Silenced”.
Conservative whips saw something was afoot, and fearful that Labour MPS would prevent the Speaker getting to his seat, ordered Tories to position themselves around the chair.
When Black Rod entered the chamber and asked MPS to take the short walk to the Lords, opposition MPS began shouting “No!” and Mr Russellmoyle flung himself on the Speaker’s legs.
A member of parliamentary staff leant over to get the MP off the Speaker, prompting a minor melee in which Dawn Butler, the shadow women and equalities secretary, was nearly knocked to the ground.
Other MPS held up their “Silenced” signs, much to the annoyance of Bob Seely, a Conservative, who snatched one of them and tore it up.
“It was just embarrassing,” he said. “It was a shameful day for them after they refused to back the election. I think they were doing something to deflect from their impotence.”
The footage of the scuffle exploded on Twitter, and numerous Conservatives spoke out at the conduct of the opposition.
“Spiteful, rowdy, dishonest and unwilling to submit themselves to a public who pay their wages,” was the verdict of Johnny Mercer, the veterans minister.
It wasn’t just Tories disappointed with the stunt. One Labour MP said: “I completely understand my colleagues’ frustration about the decision to gag us. However, I am very minded that what happened was on live television, broadcast around the world, and it’s not the image I want for my party.”
The drama seemed to fire up Mr Bercow, who told MPS that while he would “play my part” in proceedings, he did not view it as “a standard or normal prorogation”.
Andrew Stephenson, the Tory MP, was furious with Mr Bercow’s pronouncements from the chair, prompting
‘Spiteful, rowdy, dishonest and unwilling to submit themselves to a public who pay their wages’
the Speaker to explode in anger. “I require no response from you! I require no response from you, young man!” Mr Bercow repeatedly shouted.
Mr Stephenson stormed out of the Chamber, with Mr Bercow shouting: “Get out man!” as the MP left.the Speaker eventually left the chair and followed Black Rod to the House of Lords, with Conservative MPS following the procession.
Opposition MPS stayed in their seats and chanted “Shame on you!” to the departing Tories.
With nobody on the Government benches, opponents of the prorogation decided a sing-song was required.
Labour MPS delivered a rendition of the socialist anthem The Red Flag, before the SNP sang the patriotic Scottish song Scots Wha Hae. Rising to the nationalist sentiment, Welsh Labour MPS joined with Plaid Cymru representa- tives to sing the hymn Calon Lan.
After just after 2am, the chamber cleared, and Parliament was finally closed for five weeks.