Commons Speaker John Bercow has warned Theresa May that he will not be “pushed around” by the government over his handling of Brexit in parliament.
On the eve of the most important Commons vote in decades, Bercow hit out at Tory whips and other “agents” of the state who had tried “intimidating” tactics against him in recent days.
The Speaker’s dramatic outburst came as Conservative MPs lined up to express their anger at suggestions that he was “plotting” with pro-EU MPs to allow the Commons to seize control of the parliamentary procedures on plans to exit the EU.
“I will stand up for the rights of the House of Commons and I will not be pushed around by agents of the executive branch,” he said.
“They can be as rude as they like, they can be as intimidating as they like, they can spread as much misinformation as they like, it won’t make the slightest bit of difference to my continuing and absolute determination to serve the House of Commons.”
In a swipe at his Tory critics, Bercow added that he had “no intention of taking lectures on doing right by parliament from people who have been conspicuous in denial of and sometimes contempt for it”.
The Speaker’s words came after several furious Conservative MPs lined up to ask whether he would repeat his unprecedented decision last week to tear up Commons rules to give MPs powers usually only granted to ministers.
Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve met Bercow privately in his grace-and-favour apartment in Westminster last week, prompting claims of a “plot” to somehow thwart the wishes of those who voted to leave the EU in 2016.
Another former minister, Nick Boles, also drafted a plan to force the PM to adopt a ‘Plan B’ should her Brexit plans be defeated as expected on Tuesday.
Bercow said he was “not aware of or in any way party to or involved with any such proposals” and stressed that he met backbench MPs whenever they wanted to see him.
To suggest “some particular advantage” was given “as part of plot..in private apartments” was “absurd”, he added.
He also pointed out that he had been elected three times to his current post, despite complaints that he was overstepping his powers to allow MPs to block Brexit altogether.
“Unlike some people in important positions, who are of course elected constituency members but have not been elected to their offices here, I have been elected, reelected, reelected and reelected as Speaker to do the right thing by the House of Commons.
“That’s what I have done, that’s what I am doing and that’s what I will go on doing.”
Bercow has won the backing of Jeremy Corbyn for his stance in standing up for backbench MPs.
Earlier, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell told the BBC: “I actually think this is parliament at its best.
“It is forcing the executive, it is forcing the government, to actually not take parliament for granted anymore.”
At a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), Corbyn attacked May for trying to woo Labour MPs with threats.
“Theresa May has attempted to blackmail Labour MPs to vote for her botched deal by threatening the country with the chaos of No Deal.
“I know from conversations with colleagues that this has failed. The Labour party will not be held to ransom.”
