Speaker sparks furious Commons chaos after tearing up rule book over SNP Gaza debate

A senior Tory MP has started a motion of no confidence in Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, after he sparked fury and uproar in the Commons this lunchtime at a level not seen since the fevered Brexit rows of 2019.

The Speaker drew comparisons with his predecessor John Bercow, after tearing up the rule book to allow a vote on a Labour motion around Gaza and Israel.

The SNP have been allocated a day’s debate today, and chose Gaza and Israel in the hope of splitting the Labour Party.

However last night Labour submitted their own amendment to allow its divided MPs to unite over the controversial foreign policy issue.

The Government also submitted an amendment backing Israel’s right to self-defence, and precedent would dictate that the Government’s amendment would be voted on instead of Labour’s.

However in a departure from longstanding rules, Sir Lindsay announced MPs would vote on both Labour and the Government’s amendments.

The confirmation after hours of rumour and deliberation sparked immediate Commons chaos among both Tory and SNP MPs.

In a tense point of order, the SNP’s Chief Whip in Westminster demanded to know what the point of their opposition day debate now is after Labour has been given such sway over what’s being voted on.

Such was the anger, one MP shouted “Bring back Bercow” after Sir Lindsay confirmed his decision. Another MP compared the Speaker’s lengthy deliberation over whether to break Commons rules as “Bercow levels of s**t”.

In response, senior Tory MP Will Wragg was seen storming out the Commons and shortly after confirmed he has laid an Early Day Motion saying that the Commons has no faith in the Speaker.

Fellow Tory MP Maria Caulfield tweeted: “Now we know why Sue Gray was on the Speakers corridor ahead of the start of the opposition day debate and then outside the Labour whip’s office”.

Explaining his decision to ditch Parliamentary convention, Sir Lindsay Hoyle accepted it was “exceptional” and struggled to get through his statement due to heckling.

He told MPs that he would honour his election commitment of publishing any advice from his clerks amid controversial decisions, after a Tory MP pre-empted Sir Lindsay’s rule-breaking move after PMQs and raised a point of order demanding he stick to his promise.

The Speaker told the House: “In my opinion, the operation of [the relevant rule], which governs the way opposition day motions are dealt with, reflects an outdated approach which restricts…

At this point the Commons erupted in anger, with cries of “shame”, and Sir Lindsay had to demand quiet.

He continued that the current rules, in his view, “restricts the options which can put to the house” and announced his intention to ask the Commons Procedure Committee to consider the the rule.

Responding to the announcement, SNP frontbencher Owen Thompson demanded to know why the SNP’s Opposition Day debate had been railroaded by the Labour Party.

Mr Thompson pointed out that the purpose of an opposition day debate is to allow their party to put forward their business.

He slammed the Labour Party for already delaying the debate by at least 30 minutes due to a number of Point of Orders after PMQs, and Labour forcing an unnecessary vote on a 10-minute rule motion prior to the start of the Gaza debate.

The SNP chief whip fumed: “We appear to be doing things in a way that has never been done before!

“Can I ask you, Mr Speaker, what is the point of an opposition day if it’s going to be done like this?”

SNP MPs broke out into applause at the point, something explicitly banned by Commons rules, sparking further anger from the Speaker.