The UK’s governing Conservative Party has suffered a further blow after a former outspoken MP and Speaker of the House of Commons defected to the Labour Party.
John Bercow’s decision comes shortly after the Tories suffered a significant defeat in a parliamentary by-election in a supposedly safe Conservative seat on Thursday.
The Conservatives under Prime Minister Boris Johnson are “reactionary, populist, nationalistic and sometimes even xenophobic,” Mr Bercow said, in an interview with The Observer newspaper.
During his tenure as Speaker, Mr Bercow, 58, faced accusations of favouring “remainers” in Brexit debates in the lead-up to the UK leaving the EU.
He said the current government “needs to be replaced”.
Mr Bercow stood down in 2019 as Speaker after a decade in the role and had been an MP since 1997.
The Speaker has to be politically impartial and he had to resign from the Conservative Party when he was elected Speaker in 2009.
But he subsequently had many rows with his former party, including in 2015 when he survived an attempt by Conservative officials to oust him.
“I am motivated by support for equality, social justice and internationalism,” Mr Bercow said.
“That is the Labour brand. The conclusion I have reached is that this government needs to be replaced. Heavy smoking damages your healthy blood flow and cause erectile dysfunction. cialis cheap canada The latest researches state that general ED cases are resulted by damaged production probe cialis generika of nitric oxide. It reduces blood female viagra uk sugar levels and increases stamina. If you do find the condition still persists, it would then put him into canadian cialis pharmacy ill health.
“The reality is that the Labour Party is the only vehicle that can achieve that objective. There is no other credible option.”
He told the newspaper he joined Labour a few weeks ago.
Mr Bercow also described Mr Johnson as “a successful campaigner but a lousy governor”, who had contempt for Parliament.
At the end of his tenure as Speaker, Downing Street declined to put forward Mr Bercow for consideration for a peerage in the House of Lords – the upper house of the UK legislature.
Instead, the Labour opposition nominated him.
Mr Bercow said it was “blindingly obvious” that there was a “concerted campaign” to prevent him from being given a peerage, a position conventionally offered to former Speakers.
He said the Conservatives’ loss of the Chesham and Amersham parliamentary seat in last week’s by-election showed there was “considerable distrust on the part of voters in the south of England of this government”.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson marries his fiancee Carrie Symonds in a secretly-planned wedding held at Westminster Cathedral.
The amazing love event took place in a “small ceremony” on Saturday afternoon, at Downing Street and attendance was strictly by invited with full compliance to the social distance rule.
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Seven former UK foreign secretaries have urged Boris Johnson to form a global alliance to co-ordinate the response to the China-Hong Kong crisis.
China is facing mounting criticism over a planned security law for Hong Kong which would make it a crime to undermine Beijing’s authority.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the UK would not turn a blind eye.
Hong Kong was handed back to China from British control in 1997 but under a unique agreement.
The former British colony enjoys some freedoms not seen in mainland China – and these are set out in a mini-constitution called the Basic Law.
But there are fears the proposed law, which has sparked protests in Hong Kong, could compromise some of the freedoms guaranteed by the Basic Law.
In their letter to the prime minister, the cross-party group of former cabinet ministers says the UK government must be seen to lead the international response, as many countries take their cue from Britain over its former colony.
Jeremy Hunt, David Miliband, Jack Straw, William Hague, Malcolm Rifkind, David Owen and Margaret Beckett all expressed their concern at what they call China’s “flagrant breach” of Sino-British agreements by imposing tough national security laws on Hong Kong.
They urged Mr Johnson to set up an “international contact group” of allies to coordinate any joint action, similar to that set up in 1994 to try to end the conflict in the former Yugoslavia.
A Downing Street spokesman insisted the government was already playing a leading role with international partners in urging China to think again.
Mr Raab said the new security legislation “very clearly violates” the autonomy that is guaranteed under Chinese law as well as that in the 1997 agreement.
He confirmed the UK will allow those who hold British National (Overseas) (BNO) passports to come to the UK and apply to study and work for an extendable 12-month period.
This will in turn “provide a path to citizenship”, he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show on Sunday.
BNO passports were granted to Hong citizens born before the Chinese handover in 1997 and while they allow the holder some protection from the UK foreign service they do not give the right to live or work in Britain.
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Mr Raab said up to three million people registered as a British national (overseas) in Hong Kong could be eligible for UK citizenship if China presses ahead with the law.
Meanwhile, the chairman of Commons foreign affairs committee, Tom Tugendhat, said the government must realise that China has a “very, very authoritarian system of government” and should rethink the partnership between the two.
Boris Johnson will address the nation from Downing Street on Sunday evening, setting out the next steps in England’s coronavirus response.
While No 10 is giving little away, many of us are looking for updates on when children will return to school, how the government plans to get the economy moving, and how we can stay safe when travelling and working.
The PM is expected to announce the launch of an alert system for tracking coronavirus in England, and to set out a “roadmap, a menu of options” – in his words – for how England might begin to ease the current lockdown.
Mr Johnson has already unveiled a new slogan, telling the public to “stay alert, control the virus, save lives”.
It’s worth pointing out the lockdown has already been extended for another three weeks in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to 28 May.
That’s one of the reasons it’s seen as being unlikely Mr Johnson will announce immediate alterations to restrictions in England.
So with all that in mind, what should we be looking out for in Mr Johnson’s speech?
1. An update on the five tests
The PM has said a series of tests must be satisfied before lockdown measures are adjusted.
We’re likely to hear more about them on Sunday – and perhaps receive an update on progress towards meeting them.
Will Boris Johnson update us on the progress so far?
1Making sure NHS can cope
2A ‘sustained and consistent’ fall in death rate
3Infection rate decreases to ‘manageable levels’
4Supply of tests and PPE meets future demand
5Adjustments don’t risk a second peak
Source: 10 Downing Street
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What is a “manageable level” of new cases? Is the death rate falling in a “sustained and consistent” way? We’ve a longer explanation of the five tests here.
2. Mention of the ‘R’ number
This is a technical term for how fast the virus is spreading in the UK.
If the “R” number is one, that means one person with the virus passes it to one other person. Experts have said “R” is currently at or below one in the UK – and keeping it there is the aim.
Mr Johnson could explain which adjustments risk increasing “R” above one, and which don’t.
3. A decision on garden centres?
One of the only things we do know ahead of the speech is that garden centres in England will be allowed to reopen with distancing measures in place from next week, according to a senior government source.
Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford has said garden centres in Wales will be able to reopen next week.
Mr Drakeford said on Saturday this is “very much in line” with Mr Johnson’s plans – so expect to hear something similar from the PM.
4. Maybe more outdoor exercise
Another decision in Wales could signal what’s to come in Mr Johnson’s speech – Mark Drakeford announced that people in Wales would be able to leave home to exercise as much as they want from Monday.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Sunday that people in Scotland would also be able to leave home to exercise more than once a day from Monday, but that she was not prepared to change any other guidance at the moment.
Guidance on the UK government’s website limits outdoor exercise to once a day, alone or with members of your household.
5. Who might go back to work first
Mr Johnson has said Sunday’s speech will give more detail on how to “get our economy moving”.
There’s no solid information on this, but Mr Johnson may talk about helping employers observe social distancing guidelines.
We might hear a bit about how certain industries, like construction, for instance, can begin to restart.
And then there’s the furlough scheme – will the government keep paying workers’ wages?
6. A clear message on schools
There have been lots of different thoughts aired about how schools might return to normal.
Mark Drakeford said on Saturday that schools in Wales would not be re-opening to the majority of pupils in June. Will Mr Johnson say something similar?
Either way, any changes involving schools will be “extremely cautious” and “painstaking”, according to England’s deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van-Tam.
7. Measures for commuters and travellers
There’s some confusion here, too.
Airports on Saturday suggested all people arriving into the UK will need to quarantine for 14 days at a registered address. Will Mr Johnson confirm this and give us more details?
There are also questions about how commuters may be able to travel safely once lockdown is eased.
Speaking on Saturday, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said there was a chance for a “once in a generation change” to the way we travel as he unveiled a package of measures to encourage cycling and walking.
8. Advice on face masks
Mr Johnson said on 30 April face masks might be “useful” for helping the country come out of lockdown.
The government’s science advisers have given evidence on face coverings to ministers – and they’re recommended in Scotland for certain situations – will the PM say whether the public in England should use them?
9. Social bubbles
Will we be able to meet up with small groups of family and friends? That’s the question many of us want answered.
But the changes to restrictions that Mr Johnson might confirm on Sunday are unlikely to offer an immediate solution.
Some people have been wondering if pubs with beer gardens might be allowed to open – but would it be possible to make that work?
And what about sport? The PM may give us an update on the Premier League’s so-called “Project Restart” to recommence football matches behind closed doors for audiences at home.
We may get also some ideas about how the government plans to get mosques, churches and temples back up and running.
Just a quick note on devolution. While he’s the UK prime minister, any measures or policies Mr Johnson may announce on Sunday will only apply to England.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have the power to make their own decisions on lockdown regulations – and while leaders have said they want to broadly move together as one in the coming months – they may do so at different speeds.
