Labour Delays Sir David Amess Summer Debate Against Commons Tradition
Eyebrows were raised very high when parliamentary business for the remainder of this session was published and the traditional Summer Adjournment Debate, renamed after Sir David Amess, was nowhere to be seen. The debate is always the last event in the chamber before summer recess and is an opportunity for MPs to turn up and talk about pretty much whatever they like in style. Sir David was a famed expert in this and it was renamed after him following his death.
Labour tells Guido that due to having so many bills in the King’s Speech the Summer Adjournment Debate will be moved to the end of the pre-conference session. So, not in summer then…
Labour’s line on busyness rings a bit hollow when you consider that Friday is being given up to have a useless “General Debate on making Britain a clean energy superpower“, all after Labour went on and on about using Fridays for the productive passage of actual bills. One MP tells Guido they’re “fine with going longer and cutting recess, but to do away with the Sir David Amess Debate is outrageously disrespectful to his memory and the traditions of the House.” A strange error from the Labour whips there…
Veteran of parliamentary procedure Nikki da Costa tells Guido:
“There’s no good reason for this debate to be scrapped particularly when today and Friday are being used for ‘general debates’. Add in that the Government has cancelled Westminster Hall debates until September and pushed back the ballot for Private Member’s Bills, all without debate, and you’ve got an executive that is already signalling it doesn’t care about backbench business or constituency matters. They would have yelled about this in opposition but now they are in, they’re already singing a different tune.”
Another MP says Labour’s decision is “really harsh“. Not winning fans…
