Bercow has announced that House of Commons Clerk David Natzler is resigning. Natzler will resign and retire in April next year. The Cox report into Parliamentary bullying singled out the Clerk of the House for criticism along with the Speaker and other Commons senior management. When will the Speaker follow his lead…

Commons Clerk David Natzler has torpedoed the wishful thinking of Dominic Grieve and others that they will be able to use motions in the House of Commons to force the Government into any particular course of action on Brexit, be it preventing no deal, extending Article 50 or forcing a second referendum. Natzler confirmed that the Government would have no legal obligation to follow any such motions. Remainers can pass as many motions as they like but none of them will stop Brexit…

As ever, the Government can only be bound by statute – although this does mean the Government is still vulnerable to amendments to primary legislation. Natzler also didn’t have a view on what would happen if the Meaningful Vote motion itself was amended, saying it would be a question for the lawyers. Brexit not entirely out of the woods yet…

David Cameron mocks Bercow over the appointment of David Natzler as the new Clerk of the House:

“You went to the ends of the earth to find the best candidate but I’m glad we found it right here in Britain.”