House of Commons
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Reform revolt continues
Since last reporting on it in October, Reform UK MP’s have continued to vote against the grain in Commons votes.
According to Parliamentary records, all five MP’s have voted against the House each and every time since 4 July.
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Westminster Week: Stock-in-trade issues
Monday
It’s still a war zone in the Middle East and the subject is unlikely to not come up in the House of Commons. The Foreign Secretary, David Lammy MP (Tottenham/Labour), bravely took questions from either side, ranging from claims to genocide to a repudiation of a direct interventionist tendency. It’s amicable, but there are clear tensions in the House over this issue.
Wednesday
It’s budget day, and accordingly the House is full. It’s also raucous as the leader of the opposition, Rishi Sunak MP (Richmond and Northallerton/Conservatives), gives his response to the Chancellor’s budget. He’s not impressed, and makes it clear in his rousing rhetorical flourishes, joined by members behind him.
Thursday
The debates continue on the budget from yesterday. There are precious few Conservative MP’s in the Commons. They have their own reasons for it. It may be most Tories don’t care anymore, since their hammering at the polls. It’s unlikely they’re going to put up a sufficient fight in any event. They best be glad it’s not such a punishing budget.
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Labour’s recent success
The success of a party in the House of Commons is not always dependent on the same thing, but this year’s election gives hope to MP’s their chances may have improved significantly.
In particular, Labour must be betting large on getting through legislation to increase their chances in the political stakes. It rings true already, in part because of pay increases for workers.
A brief analysis of the Commons chamber right now, post-election, reveals why there’s an advantage. The seat share for Labour spiked at the ballot box, against misery for the Tories.
While Reform UK did impressively well to get their first seat share, the Liberal Democrats are in pole position to get their mandate across stronger in the next batch of lawmaking.
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Reform give a thumbs down
In a quirk of recent Parliamentary activity it appears on record Reform UK are finding it hard to agree with the House.
In every vote since 4 July each of its MP’s have drawn the shorter straw.
It shows a maverick course so far and bodes an interesting way ahead in terms of further issues to raise.
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Lowe challenges PM
Rupert Lowe MP immediately stirred controversy in Parliament with his first speech. He challenged Sir Keir Starmer about immigration during a debate in the House of Commons on Wednesday.
“My constituents in Great Yarmouth have little doubt that uncontrolled legal and illegal immigration since 1997 has damaged and disrupted their community and undermined their public services. Does the Prime Minister agree that importing millions of people with no thought whatever to the brutal consequences has failed our country? I know the good people of Great Yarmouth would much appreciate a yes or no answer to this straightforward question.”
Starmer disagreed with Lowe’s estimate of millions. He said the Conservatives lost control of the situation and instead he intends to deal with gang-related activity.
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Anderson strikes out
Lee Anderson, MP for Ashfield for Reform UK, has spoken in Parliament since his re-election on conservative values. He’s touched on energy generation, border security, and healthcare.
In particular he’s challenged the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper on the potential for cooperation with France and further European nations to return migrants to their home states.
When I was in the migrant camps in northern France last year, the migrants told me and some of my colleagues that one deterrent that would stop them coming would be if they were turned back in the channel or sent back the same day. We saw the Border Force agency take a boatload back just last week. Will the Home Secretary now, with that advice, grow a political backbone and order the Border Force to send the boats back the same day?
His question today drew support for such cooperation by Cooper. She referenced an incident last week whereby Border Force agents returned a boat full of migrants into the hands of authorities on the French coast.
However, she did not confirm it would be a Labour government policy to deal with illegal migration on the same day it occurs. It was suggested it could still be stopped before it occurs on the French coast to begin with.
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Farage is back
Nigel Farage made one of his first contributions to the chamber in the House of Commons today as an elected MP.
He paid tribute to the service of Sir Lindsay Hoyle – who is to remain as Speaker of the House – and disparaged John Bercow, his predecessor in the role.
“Mr Speaker-Elect, thank you very much. We are the new kids on the block. We have no experience in this Parliament whatsoever, even though some of us have tried many times over the years to get here, so we cannot judge you from working in this place, but we can judge you from how the outside world sees you. I mean not just the United Kingdom but the world, because Prime Minister’s question time is global, box office politics. It is pretty clear to everyone that you act with great neutrality and that you have brought tremendous dignity to the role as Speaker, so we absolutely endorse you entirely for this job. That is, I must say, in marked contrast to the little man who was there before you, who besmirched the office so dreadfully in doing his best to overturn the biggest democratic result in the history of the country. We support you fully, Sir.”
His successful campaign in the constituency of Clacton has boosted his chances of Reform UK having an influence over the way the nation is governed.