COMMONS Speaker Lindsay Hoyle was fighting for his future today after the shambolic conclusion to Wednesday’s debate on a Gaza ceasefire.
Over 60 Scottish National Party and Tory MPs signalled no confidence in Sir Lindsay after he broke procedural conventions to suit Labour leader Keir Starmer’s political convenience, with the SNP pressing for an early debate on his future.
The farcical Gaza debate ended without a vote being taken after SNP and Tory MPs walked out of the Commons when it became clear that they were to be denied a vote on the SNP’s firm ceasefire motion.
Sir Lindsay shredded procedure by allowing a vote first on a softer Labour amendment, calling for a ceasefire with various conditions, despite being told by his expert clerks that it could lead to chaos.
In the debate, Labour MP Rosenna Allin-Khan, backing a ceasefire, had said: “What this Parliament does will resonate with leaders and peoples across the globe.
“The mother of all Parliaments has something to say.”
The Labour plan had been tabled by Sir Keir under pressure from the strength of feeling in the country, but mainly to stop Labour’s own divisions on the issue being exhibited once again.
It failed in the absence of a ceasefire vote, leaving no Labour MP able to claim they supported one, though several pro-Palestinian MPs had made their position clear in the debate.
The beleaguered speaker today offered the SNP a re-run debate on its original motion, leaving things back at square one.
Sir Lindsay issued an apology to MPs on Wednesday night, which he repeated today.
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf said the Speaker’s “position looks to me to be untenable.”
“What we saw was frankly disgraceful, chaotic scenes in the Commons,” he said.
“The true tragedy of that is that it takes away from the absolute humanitarian catastrophe that has unfolded and is deepening in Gaza.”
Leader of the House Penny Mordaunt was blunt in blaming the Labour leader for compromising the Speaker.
She said it was wrong to suggest that “the shameful events that took place were anything other than party politics on behalf of the Labour Party.”
She slammed the “weak and fickle” party leader for putting his own interests before “fairness, integrity and democracy” — even contrasting him unfavourably with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who she acknowledged was sincere in his position on Gaza.
Sir Keir today denied allegations that Labour figures had threatened the Speaker with removal from office after the general election if he did not bow to the party’s internal management requirements.
He said: “I did not threaten the Speaker in any way whatsoever. I simply urged [him] to ensure that we have the broadest possible debate.”
Sir Keir’s purported commitment to a ceasefire in Gaza was undermined by his refusal to condemn the government’s abstention on the issue at the United Nations security council earlier this week.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Sir Lindsay’s decisions were “very concerning,” but said the Commons Speaker is “reflecting on what happened” before warning that parliamentarians should never be intimidated by “extremists.”
Sir Lindsay and some MPs tried to blame the mass movement of solidarity with Palestine for the fiasco, saying it had made MPs fearful for their safety.
Protecting MPs “led me to make a wrong decision,” Sir Lindsay said.
Campaigners condemned the implied attack on the protest movement, with the Palestine Solidarity Campaign praising the “moral purpose” of those marching for a ceasefire.
MP Mick Whitley warned not to “conflate legitimate, lively protest with abuse” and Labour NEC member Jess Barnard said that “being lobbied, challenged and held to account for your voting record are [all] part of democracy.”
Former Labour MP Laura Smith said: “Accountability is not abuse. Unhappy emails and messages are not abuse.
“Children being blown up whilst the political leaders look on. That’s unforgivable.”
