The government announced tonight that there will be a short debate tomorrow (26 March, the last sitting day before the election) on the election of a Speaker at the beginning of a new parliament. Traditionally, there has been a vote in the usual way (MPs trooping through the Division lobbies). Again, traditionally, MPs have voted overwhelmingly to re-elect the previous Speaker.

 

The Tories want to change this. They want the ballot to be held in secret. It is well-known that many Tories dislike the incumbent, John Bercow. They think he has made life too difficult for the government. His supporters are more likely to say that he has worked as the servant of the House, not the government. In other words, he has done his job.

 

In his last act before retiring as an MP, William Hague will be proposing this change tomorrow with a very short debate. All Tory MPs have been summoned to a meeting before the debate whereas many Labour MPs have already returned to their constituencies on the assumption that nothing of any consequence would be happening tomorrow. To their utter shame, it seem that the Lib Dems have agreed to this although Nick Clegg himself will be absent for the vote.

 

There may well be a case for changing the procedure. Regardless, this should only happen after a proper debate. It should not happen after a brief debate held at a few hours' notice.

The government lost the vote :lol: Thankfully, there were some MPs who saw this as the shabby exercise it was.

YAY *.*

Good grief, those MPs crying at that pompous guy who said he'd been "played like a fool".... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-32070175

 

Nice to see this is what they get emotional at rather than people being driven to food banks.

As if there haven't been any emotional speeches over foodbanks either in the last five years! It was an honourable speech for him to make.

What would this have meant in terms of speaker?

 

Well done William Hague in your final job in parliament you will be rememberd fora baseball cap and a speech as a student in front of your idol Mrs T! That is all....

What would this have meant in terms of speaker?

Secret ballot for speaker elections, which would have stopped the formality of the Speaker being re-elected after a general election (it just gets waved through normally) and turned it into an actual battle.

I'm not sure whether the Tories had a specific candidate in mind. However, it is fair to assume that, if they remained in government, they would have preferred a Speaker who was less likely to allow ministers to be summoned to the House to make a statement.

The rumour is that they would've offered Speaker to Nigel Dodds (leader of the DUP) as part of coalition negotiations.

The rumour is that they would've offered Speaker to Nigel Dodds (leader of the DUP) as part of coalition negotiations.

 

Nigel Dodds isn't the leader of the DUP. Peter Robinson is, although the latter isn't an MP. But if those rumours are true, then it means that the Conservatives seem to think he's going to win his seat in May, which given that he's currently my MP, I would not be too happy with.

YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN

Well Nigel is currently the DUP leader in the Commons.

 

Brett make sure you vote Niaomi then and get all your friends to as well. It's been like nazi germany in that seat since Robinson lost it in 2010 - whipping up sectarian tensions over flags etc within loyalist working class areas - dispicable!!

 

I think I'm in South bfast so will have to side with the stoppers to keep the right wingers out!