Angela Rayner has been on the media rounds today doing something very out of character; praising a Tory majority. She keeps on repeating that the Privileges Committee has a Tory majority, something which she usually condemns in her own colourful way as a bad thing. Today she has been citing it as evidence that their judgement can be trusted. Does this make you a tad suspicious?  

Here’s Guido’s guide to Angela Rayner’s praise-worthy Tories:

• When Charles Walker was widely criticised as an unsuitable to judge Boris, the MP well known for detesting Boris told the Daily Mail “I’m entirely relaxed about my position. If people want to suggest I’m biased against Boris, biased for Boris – people can say what they like. The great advantage I have over most candidates is that I’m leaving at the next election. I’m really beyond their reach.” Charles makes no bones about openly detesting Boris (and Guido).

• Sir Bernard Jenkin was a leading Brexiteer and Guido remembers him fondly. Unfortunately Bernard is not fond of Boris, in the days before his resignation from the premiership, Bernard told him he should leave with grace rather than being “forced out like Donald Trump clinging to power”. Which seems like he has already made up his mind. 

• Alberta Costa was and presumably still is a strong backer of Penny Mordaunt to become prime minister. He resigned from Theresa May’s government because he thought May was not protecting EU citizens rights in post-Brexit Britain, sounding very much like the remainy lawyer. Guido doesn’t think he was that keen on Brexit or Boris.
• Andy Carter on the other hand was elected in 2019 on the back of the Boris surge and has been frequently pictured with Boris. Guido found no evidence of him publicly criticising Boris. Privately however, in correspondence seen by Guido, Carter explained to a constituent
  

  “I made no public comment before the PM resigned his position because I sit in the committee which had been asked by the House of Commons to investigate if Mr Johnson had deliberately misled Parliament.  That inquiry has not concluded its deliberations.”
  

  Carter goes on to explain that his private view was that Boris “had no alternative but to stand down” saying he took “no pleasure from seeing Mr Johnson resign” but he thought Boris “had to step down.” That suggests Carter too might have formed a pre-conception…

Charles Walker’s Administration Committee has an… interesting report out this morning on the touchy topic of what to do with MPs after they’ve left Parliament. Guido will declare Walker’s interests for him – he’s standing down at the next election…

The report, entitled “Smoothing the cliff edge: supporting MPs at their point of departure from elected office”, looks at the legitimate problem faced by politicians who’ve maybe served in the Commons for over a decade, before quickly realising they have no real-world transferable skills to help them get a new job afterwards.

The solutions suggested by Walker’s committee are, however, novel. One of them includes a medal ceremony “to mark a member’s departure”. This, they suggest, could be an event with all their friends and family. Thankfully the awarding of medals would be at the discretion of the Commission, meaning the likes of Jared O’Mara and Fiona Onasanya would likely be turned down…

The report also suggests MPs should be awarded certificates to set out the “core skills which Members use.”

Worried your MP doesn’t have any core skills? Don’t – the Committee’s also thought of that. MPs standing down could receive career coaching “to help them identify and articulate their skills and experience and areas for development and future career direction”. Taxpayer cash could also be spent on universities and colleges to provide the training and certificates…

Read the report in full below…

Read More

“Policing by consent” got a pretty good rap in the Report stage of the Public Order Bill, just now – but whose consent they didn’t specify.

Oil protesters sit in the middle of roads with that air of suffering humility while three-day tailbacks pile up in front of them. The police, deciding this isn’t “serious disruption”, seem to require their consent to move them out of the way.

The Bill creates many offences, all of which, it was repeatedly said, could be policed by existing laws – those covering wilful obstruction of the highways, public nuisance, aggravated trespass and any number of closely-defined misdemeanours dating back beyond the 1986 Public Order Act to medieval times

Read More

Not content with blocking parliamentary staffers’ access rights to Strangers’ bar, Guido hears a fierce turf war has kicked off between MPs and Lords over terrace access rights. Speaking to a noble friend last night, it emerged they had recently been told they didn’t have permission to be served in Strangers’, leading to awkwardness in front of the guest for whom they’d tried buying drinks. By coincidence, a co-conspirator got in touch at the same time claiming that earlier this week, Speaker Lindsay Hoyle was asked to leave the Lords’ terrace because he didn’t have access privileges…

It was apparently in retaliation to this that Hoyle issued the reciprocal edict for Lords attempting to enjoy the Commons half of the terrace. The battle spilt out into the open when Commons doorkeepers assumed their new role as terrace bouncers, blocking peers from entry. Peace talks are said to be scheduled today…

This morning the chairman of the Commons Procedure Committee Sir Charles Walker has written to MPs’ offices telling them staff must not abuse their access to the estate by getting drunk and sleeping in their office:

“I am writing to all Colleagues to express my concerns that some Parliamentary passholders, including Members’ staff, are abusing their privileges in relation to working at the House of Commons.

During a recent meeting with Alison Giles, Director of Security for Parliament, I learned that passholders are returning to the premises, having missed the last train home after a night out, to sleep in their office. This behaviour, though isolated, is wholly outside the rules, both for security and fire risk purposes.

In view of the above, I am asking Colleagues to be vigilant in ensuring that passholders, be they our staff or anyone else, conduct themselves to the highest standard at all times. If you see unacceptable behaviour, please bring it to the attention of the Serjeant-at-Arms who will deal with it.

Any member of your staff struggling with addiction can access support through the confidential Employee Assistance Programme: XXXXXXXXXXX

The House will be communicating directly with its own staff. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Yours,

Sir Charles Walker
Chair of the Committee”

There is a venerable tradition of hammered, worse for wear young staffers sleeping overnight in their offices. Sometimes more adventurous and exciting activities occur, those flames of passion are not actually a fire risk. Ignore the killjoys and take your chances…

Sparks flew on Newsnight yesterday as Charles Walker – who’d clearly had his Weetabix – turned up to defend Boris’s new cabinet against a Labour spokesperson and Anna Soubry. Some might say one and the same…

Nadine Dorries provided the biggest clash, as the eternally bitter Soubry ranted that her appointment “actually says everything that’s wrong and rotten about this prime minister’s stewardship of this country”. Charles Walker had some thoughts:

“Nadine Dorries has been a health minister, a minister of state, at an incredibly difficult time for the department of health; has been an extremely good minister for mental health; and really to come onto this programme and just trash her like that is just not a very nice thing to do to be perfectly honest”

Responding to Soubry’s claim that people don’t really care about reshuffles in the real world, Walker pointed out “Why is it the lead story on Newsnight, and why are you appearing on Newsnight?” Why indeed…