An investigation is underway into allegations of bullying and manhandling of Conservative MPs in parliament this evening in a chaotic vote on fracking.
Photo: Chris Bryant MP
Labour’s Ian Murray tweeted that Conservative whips were screaming at fellow members of their party.
I’ve never seen scenes like it at the entrance to a voting lobby. Tories on open warfare. Jostling and Rees Mogg shouting at his colleagues. Whips screaming at Tories.
— Ian Murray MP (@IanMurrayMP) October 19, 2022
They are done and should call a general election.
Two Tory whips dragging people in. Shocking.
Labour’s Chris Bryant told the House of Commons:
“I saw members being physically manhandled into another lobby. and being bullied. If we want to stand up against bullying in this House against our staff, we have to stop bullying in this chamber as well.”
He urged the deputy speaker to begin an investigation and posted a photo of scenes outside the division lobby.
David Linden, the SNP MP for Glasgow East, said on Twitter:
“Just watched the Deputy Prime Minister practically pick up a hesitant Tory MP and march him into the Government lobby. Astonishing.”
Earlier, Conservative whips had told MPs that the vote on Labour’s call for a ban on fracking would be a vote of no confidence in the government. But just before the vote, the climate minister, Graham Stuart, suggested that the government had changed its mind.
This left Conservative MPs confused and angry.
Earlier in the debate, Ruth Edwards, Conservative MP for Rushcliffe, had said members of her own front bench should “hang their heads in shame”. She said MPs had been forced to chose between voting against the party’s 2019 manifesto or lose the whip.
There was later confusion about whether the chief whip, Wendy Morton, and her deputy, Craig Whittaker, had resigned. It later turned out that were still in post.
This evening, Labour began an online advertising campaign targeting MPs who voted against this evening’s motion to ban fracking.
The party’s climate change spokesperson, Ed Miliband, who opened the debate, said tonight:
“the Conservatives have voted against Labour’s fracking ban, against the wishes of their constituents, the British people, and their own manifesto. They have chosen to stand by a failing Prime Minister against the best interests of working people.”
Jamie Peters, fracking campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:
“The fact that Conservative MPs publicly stated that they would vote with Labour is truly extraordinary. There is clearly significant and mounting opposition to fracking across the political spectrum.
“The Business Secretary’s amendment shows the government is now finally recognising the strength of feeling against fracking and the evident dissatisfaction within its own ranks. It shows just how deeply unpopular it is across Westminster, not to mention with the public – not helped by the fact that the government’s plans are devoid of scientific backing.
“Let this be where the fracking story ends. Instead, we must opt for the real solutions that will increase our energy security, lower bills and cut the harmful emissions that cause climate change – insulating our heat-leaking homes and ramping up the production of cheap, popular and clean renewable energy.”
The Green Party MP, Caroline Lucas, tweeted:
Sadly Labour’s attempt to defeat Government on #fracking fails – 230 for their motion, 326 against. So this climate-wrecking, earthquake-triggering, ideologically-driven, deeply unpopular, fracking fantasy lives another day – but if local consent means anything, it can’t happen
— Caroline Lucas (@CarolineLucas) October 19, 2022
Campaigners in shale gas areas saw local Conservative MPs vote against Labour’s motion, despite opposing fracking.
In south Yorkshire, Matthew Wilkinson, of Woodsetts Against Fracking, responded to the decision by the village’s MP, Alexander Stafford, not to vote for a ban :
“We feel completely betrayed by Alex Stafford’s voting choice. We’ve heard him speak to residents saying he would do all he could to rid Rother Valley of the threat of fracking. And we’ve heard him speak in parliament that fracking is a red herring that will not reduce energy costs. To be frank, we feel betrayed.”
The Conservative political commentator, Iain Dale tweeted this evening:
“This just cannot go on. It is a government unworthy of the name. It has ceased to be. Good riddance to an embarrassment of a Home Secretary, but at 7pm there will be a whole clutch of MPs who will vote against the whip on fracking, therefore forgoing it. A total loss of control.”
Update
A report for the Commons’ speaker, published on 1 November 2022 concluded that “evidence as a whole” did not support allegations of the use of physical contact to compel a member into the No lobby during the vote on Labour’s motion.
DRILL OR DROP? 
Well the damage to the Tories because of fear of Farage (under Cameron) has now destroyed their own party. They are fracked! What is awful is the damage to Europe & our country. The break up of the United Kingdom will now follow. The right wing Brexiteers will have little England as a tribute to their stupid nationalism. A nation does not shrink itself to greatness.
First time I have ever agreed with Dr Nick Riley.
Kathryn, thank you. I think you will find we both agree on many things. We may differ on how to get there. Happy to discuss if you want to contact me (Ruth I am happy for you to pass on my contact details to Kathryn). Nick
The Tories are finished, thank you Mogg & Co. No doubt they have made their fortunes from crippling the country knowing that they have no chance of winning the next GE and leaving a mess that they can blame on Labour in years to come. At least we were right that Fracking will never happen in the UK .
Sounds like you are remembering 2010, Jono, but with a few names changed around!
No Martin, you are . I’m remembering that 12 years of Tory destruction that followed.
You mean after 2010 when no money was left. That is the left for you John, leave the country with no money, higher unemployment and then expect someone to wave the magic wand, increase employment and pay off the debts. So they can come back later and rinse and repeat.
As we all knew, this issue of fracking onshore in the UK is not a serious issue for proper discussion now in the Tory party in Parliament, how could it be with Rees-Mogg in charge? Some MPs are genuinely opposed, but others are nimbys (yes fracking is good but not in my constituency)! This was not presented as a free vote, so we have complete chaos. I wish I had seen Coffey manhandling people into the lobby to vote for fracking, that would have been something to see!
You are correct CJR. It was not a free vote. It never was going to be as Labour constructed it so it couldn’t be. The instruction from the Whips was being shown on TV early in the day, so why on earth Coffey should have been required to move people appears adrift of the rest of the day. If MPs are so thick they cannot understand a simple instruction which was about procedure, they should get a job elsewhere. They all knew what was being attempted, and all had clear instructions to stop it.
The same TV lot who were quite aware of what was instructed earlier in the day also seemed to get themselves confused as the day moved on. Or were they just seeking to confuse others?
Mr. Bercow’s buddy should start to remember he didn’t get the gig.
At last, something we agree on , They should get a job elsewhere. Oh hang on , most of them have got jobs elsewhere.
It was not Labour who constructed the confusion but the Tories themselves. After claiming all day that the debate was to be whipped and treated as a confidence issue, thereby threatening Tory MPs with a possible election, MP Graham Stuart changed the goalposts a few minutes before the end of the debate when he suddenly stated it wasn’t to be a confidence vote. The Tory MPs who opposed fracking then naturally felt able to vote in the interests of their constituents and with their consciences rather than on party lines but were then extremely upset to be met with the whips, Rees Mogg and Coffey coercing them in a very heavy handed way into voting with the government. None of this can be blamed on Labour who were simply asking for a future debate on fracking on which all MPs would be allowed to vote. That doesn’t seem to be an unreasonable request.
The government has the GALL to go on national TV and talk about how the vote in parts of Ukraine joining Russia was ” INVALID “due to voters being coerced to vote a particular way by the Russians.
YET , last night , right before our very eyes , we witnessed Conservatives MP’s being BULLIED, threatened and even manhandled in the houses of Parliament .
Shameful, Utterly Shameful.
Nobody, I repeat NOBODY in any part of the world is now going to be lectured by the UK about what constitutes a ” Gold standard in freedom and democracy ” including people of the UK , after what happened last night .
Using the benchmark of our own government . If the vote in UKRAINE was deemed ” INVALID ” because of bullying and Coercion by the Russians , then the vote concerning FRACKING last night , should also be deemed ” INVALID ”
We must also not forget the large number of Conservative MP’s that would of voted against the government , if it hadn’t been made a Three-Line Whip vote , with added threats , bullying and manhandling thrown in for good measure .
When it comes to intimidation, maybe those comments should be directed to those idiots climbing the QEII Bridge , stopping people attending funerals. But then they’re saving the world so anything is permissible.
So, a three- line Whip is so unusual? Nope.
In the UK Jack a political party is elected to run the country if the monarch asks that political party to then do so.
It is perfectly standard that the party elected expects the members to vote according to the party instruction, unless a free vote is granted. If members of that party don’t want to help run the country, then they can walk-and sometimes do, but rarely.
Last time I looked, the HoC had not been invaded by an aggressor that then removed the UK system from the agenda.
The level of confusion regarding the UK political system on DoD is not new and says something about some posters. Suspect the rules of cricket would produce similar confusion.
MARTIN ,
THANK YOU for your above comment of NOTHING. .
It tells us NOTHING , we didn’t already know .
It does NOTHING to address the points I raised .
You’ve said NOTHING about how deplorable it is , that a serving UK government had to resort to bullying, threats , intimidation and manhandling of its own Conservative MP’s to push through an unpopular vote on Fracking.
Your above comment does NOTHING , to explain why last night’s vote on Fracking , should not now be deemed ” INVALID .”
Thanks for NOTHING.
It will be interesting to see how sanguine Fred is when Labour put a three line whip on their fracking ban motion when they get into power. 😉
Oh, I have no problem with democracy, reaction. But, unlike some politicians, I know bans are no more permanent than moratoriums.
However, whenever that time may be, I will be interested in where UK energy supplies will come from-when the wind doesn’t blow, and the sun doesn’t shine. As Starmer doesn’t believe in God, obviously prayer will not be an answer, as Labour didn’t believe in more nuclear that may be an issue, especially when the £160B comes onto energy bills. As they believe in higher windfall tax on N.Sea they may find more of less doesn’t add up to much and rapidly becomes a minus. Perhaps they might come up with a replacement for fuel duty? Or they could end up like the current situation and warn that power cuts are likely and just trust, rather than pray, that not too many people die as a result.
There are a lot more politicians yet to be sacrificed upon the bonfire of rubbish arithmetic around Net Zero. Labour would be wise to let others suffer that-but then, they are not that wise, eg. one Labour offer to solve current inflation-price controls! In other words, squeeze the margins private companies make, and then their action is to reduce staff numbers and the unemployed are paid benefits. They then spend less, so inflation is eventually controlled, yet their lives are ruined. They then have to compete, usually unsuccessfully, to get a new job with uncontrolled cheap labour allowed to enter the country to try and keep costs down. They eventually see that the arithmetic doesn’t add up for them and give the Tories a landslide.
I have seen the rinse and repeat a number of times. It will happen again. No one is offering anything to break the cycle. Indeed, current offers will make it worse as UK energy prices will continue to become expensive compared to other countries and UK manufacturing will continue to go over the horizon, leaving a bigger burden for individuals and/or rubbish public sectors.
Meanwhile, but probably not for long, I am a very happy bunny having received notice today of my £500 winter fuel payment to be added to my six monthly payments into my energy provider. Good old fossil fuel companies. The Golden Geese have delivered such a nice little nest egg. Good new Chancellors who have been acting like Santa for around two years now. Now to become Scrooge.
Shame about your big diesel premium reaction, but then, let those with the broadest shoulders pay. Get used to it.
I don’t think Labour would need a three line whip on a fracking ban motion. Labour MPs would welcome a ban.
“ Last time I looked, the HoC had not been invaded by an aggressor that then removed the UK system from the agenda.”
Myopia rules. Decency and integrity, the much-vaunted U.K. system, duly removed.
Look more closely – Thatcher, Osborne, Cameron, The Liar, Rees-Mogg, Patel, Truss, Braverman inter alia.
[Edited by moderator]
The investigation by the Speaker has concluded there was NO bullying or intimidation.
There were raised voices trying to clarify to the confused, but really why would they be confused? They have observed the nonsense of the opposition trying to take over the order paper before. It is not new. There are raised voices in the HoC almost every day it is occupied.
So, as per usual Jack you are more interested in muddying the waters than presenting fact. Nothing new, I agree, but nothing informative either.
I look forward to the correction/update on DoD.
To be strictly accurate, the Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, said there was “no evidence of undue influence on MPs”.
This is not the same as saying there was no bullying or intimidation.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-63473032
[Comment removed by moderator]
Oh, I see evidence has changed to influence now.
But please advise how bullying and intimidation could be due influence!
Sorry, Paul, you are trying to defend the indefensible. The third hand reports that DoD featured were not accurate. You do yourself no favors playing semantics around the facts to attempt to create a false truth. I know it was not just DoD, Sky and the BBC were up to the same tricks. Standards are pretty low generally, but some do prefer to receive accurate news rather than inaccurate hysteria generated from political game playing. DoD can report a protest about inaccurate reporting by BBC and yet fail to observe the same responsibility. It is what it is, but I will still observe what it is.
PS.
Becky Morton, BBC political reporter:
An internal investigation has found no evidence of BULLYING during a vote on fracking last month, the House of Commons speaker has said:
Sir Lindsay told MPs:
“The atmosphere was tense, and members were raising their voices to make themselves heard, but there is no evidence of any BULLYING or undue influence placed on other members.”
Martin
First, “undue influence” includes bullying.
Second, your quote repeats the “No evidence of…” part of the synopsis, something you omitted in your original comment. The report does NOT say there was no bullying etc, it says there is no evidence of it.
Third, perhaps you could point to any inaccurate reporting in the original piece which talked about “a chaotic vote” (not challenged by anyone) and quoted three MPs (clearly identified as two Labour and one SNP) describing what they had seen.
Yet the subject of the three descriptions has denied he was bullied or was unduly influenced!
This was a political stunt. It has been shown to be that. If DoD find that uncomfortable and wish to continue with the claims that have now been rejected after an independent investigation, so be it.
The pictures of Bryant pontificating about standards in Westminster are just as interesting.
Forget Truss, here are just a few news items relevant to the fracking debate….
1. China has today relaxed its COVID immigration rules which may well be a sign of relaxing the zero COVID strategy generally, this signals increased world demand for LNG with implications for higher gas prices in the U.K. and the EU.
2. Russia has fired a missile in the vicinity of an RAF unarmed reconnaissance aircraft in international airspace, in other words raising the international temperature yet again. How far is it from this to an “accidental” cutting of the U.K. -Norway gas pipeline which provides a major part of our gas supply. Putin keeps upping the ante and it’s dangerous.
3. The price of Diesel fuel in particular will continue to rise. Whatever the supply of crude oil, a major constraint on diesel supply is limited refinery capacity across Europe. Until now diesel has been imported in large quantities from Russian refineries but from the end of the year there will be a ban on purchasing Russian supplies, producing U.K. shortages which will increase inflation.
I am deeply disappointed that the Labour Party has chosen populism and polititical advantage over the needs of their constituents.
Liz Truss has resigned.
All the evasion narratives and last ditch scare mongering in an effort to change the subject will now have to be re-evaluated in a General Election.
In two years’ time, YYLee. UK is not USA.
Watch this space and time zone Martin Frederick Collyer.
I am watching the UK one, YYLee.
Here a political party has a large majority, and the date of the next election is up to them to set. Whilst the factions within that party agree on little else, there appears no appetite within that party to call an election. Others outside of that party have no power to change that situation, having put forward their proposals in 2019 and having them largely rejected and suffering the consequences that the arithmetic produced.
This space and time zone is the United Kingdom, Martin Frederick Collyer. Look on a map. It’s a group of islands, in the Atlantic Ocean towards the east, just off the coast of Europe. You can’t miss it, It looks like Liz Truss riding a pig chasing a teddy bear, which is running towards your own space and time zone. Perhaps, your problem is, that merely ‘watching’ this United Kingdom space and time zone from that distance, might require a better telescope?
In that case, watch this space and time zone from where you are. Two years may well be reduced to months, maybe even weeks. To your own vantage point, it may be an Einsteinian time and space distortion effect due to a local political structural collapse. Gravity, political or otherwise, is irreversible.
*’Problems cannot be solved with the same mind set that created them.’* – Albert Einstein.
The vote was not about fracking as far as the Tories were concerned, Jack. (A few stated they were confused yet they had all received clear instructions earlier in the day.)
The vote was about taking control of the order paper.
Now, you may know NOTHING about the way the UK operates in the HoC, which is already a given.
Don’t blame me for that. Even as distant as you are you could DYOR, yet you don’t, you prefer to remain in ignorance. So, you end up knowing NOTHING. Your choice.
MARTIN , yes your right . the vote was nothing to do with Fracking .
OH YES , It was about the rights of flying pigs to use Heathrow Airport as a landing strip 🤣
Nobody was confused, everybody knew what it was about ….. Strong arm tactics and the Three-Line Whip , with a dash of Bullying, Intimidation, Threats and Physical Manhandling thrown in for good measure, pushed through a deeply unpopular vote.
What made all this so much worse , is that the Truss government , then tried to back peddle and say that ALL the MP’s misunderstood what was said and that it was in fact a Free Vote …….. Wrong, Wrong, Wrong.
This is what finally ended the Truss leadership .
MARTIN , your FEEBLE attempt to try and copy my use of the NOTHING word in order to try and chip away at the comments of JACK , will only add more laughter for the readers .
Thank You , we all need a good laugh in these difficult times 🤣
Yes, a good laugh is indeed required Jack. And you can be relied upon to provide it. 2020 was a “normal” year may provide a laugh to a few but to billions across the world it will still be deeply insulting.
You obviously have no knowledge of what you post so, as usual, resort to the silliness defense mechanism.
The laughter could be accelerated Jack if you just avoided the usual mechanism and admitted you were unfamiliar with the subject.
The Tories had been told what the vote was about. They were instructed it was about Labour trying to take control of the order paper. They were told, following the issues that had been created previously, when Bercow allowed it repeatedly, it was to be voted down. Whether they were unable to comprehend that, had spent much of the day in the bars or just wanted an excuse to sit on the fence, they can now explain to the Whips-although with the demise of Truss that will probably be an easier task.
At the end of the day, Jack, the Labour motion was HEAVILY defeated. No one likes a bad loser. The defeat was even greater than the Tory majority! Once again, the antis find the reality of arithmetic.
How, YYLee?
Apart from your waffle, how?
Unless the Tories call a General Election, it will not happen. Others can stamp their feet but have no means to change the current system whilst they don’t control the system. You can argue the opposite to the reality but that is just delusional.
“Simples”-Meerkats.
How! Kimosabe! White man speak with forked tongue!
Meerkats? Sorry, wrong country again. Meerkats live in South Africa, which is even further away. Incidentally, Meerkats don’t speak English (or American?). *’Simples’* or otherwise.
So you see, as usual, the only ‘waffle’ is yours, Martin Frederick Collyer. Somewhat typical, however, considering the fact free emotional posts to date from your own distorted ‘watch’ perspective so far. Not from the inconvenient political reality here in the United Kingdom from the USA perspective, which you admitted to as a location yourself.
Have you lost your sense of humour? Why pray is that? It couldn’t be the total loss of any political or financial credibility of the conservative party, could it? So is it now that you want an argument about nothing in particular to attempt to bolster up all that embarrassment, maybe?
Ask the people who are already in severe financial constrictions due to this series of conservative party PM’s party political implosions and bringing down the United Kingdom under this conservative government’s self-destructive situation into a laughingstock worldwide?
Even several conservative MP’s have said there is nothing they can do, following the fracking debate and vote/confidence vote fiasco, in order to avoid a General Election in maybe months, maybe weeks. Or didn’t you notice that either? Perhaps there is more research and education required to bring you up to speed?
45 days for Liz Truss Prime Ministership, 38 days for Kwasi Kwarteng’s chancellorship, one day of debates and votes on fracking/conservative party emergency. Which turned out to be a bullied and whipped vote to make the MP’s perjure themselves in spite of their obligation to their constituents to vote in sympathy to their frack free declarations?
But as everyone witnessed, it became an emergency call to preserve the conservative party from imminent political structural collapse? Since when has such a rapid series of arrivals and departures been the norm in any political party?
So an even more urgent call for a General Election from the entire electorate is also inevitable.
Like I said, watch this space and time zone, Kimosabe.
So YYLee you are unfamiliar with the UK.
Nice of you to join in, but I will need to keep remembering that now you have made it so obvious.
Meanwhile, just more waffle, no realistic suggestion as to the “how”.
The “when and how” is decided by the Tories whilst they are in power. Nobody else. There are many who don’t like that, there are many who don’t understand it, but it is fact. There are a few who don’t understand what a fact is, YYLee, but that is not my area of interest.
Oh, as another matter of fact and to provide you with some knowledge about the UK, I live about 5 miles away from a large colony of meerkats who live, breed and thrive in the UK. I have visited another colony, in the UK, some distance away and was bitten by one, and had to check whether I needed to be worried about infection. Not sure whether any have branched out into marketing but that is a crowded field, so perhaps not. Simples.
My sense of humour is thriving, thank you. The “sophisticated” anti use of the Internet provides me with endless fun.
MFC, the 2019 election result turned on Brexit lies and slander (of JC, IMO) not on Labour policy. The only bad thing about a massive Labour majority now or soon is that it will probably delay PR.
Oh I see, KM. In 2019 Labour policies were really so popular that they dazzled the electorate, and they ended up putting their crosses in the wrong boxes.
And meanwhile, back in the real world……JC has had the whip removed! By whom? Not the Tories but by Labour.
MARTIN ,
If you understand the English language , please , PLEASE read the Drill Or Drop news article heading .
There is a CLUE as to what this vote is about.
There is a clue to your confusion, Jack. That is somewhat different.
I think there have been previous discussions between us about you appearing to be the marketing professions favorite-a “follower”. Sorry you mistake me for one, but I reassure you I am not.
The debate was about fracking, the vote for the Tory MPs was about who controlled the order paper. That was made known to those MPs well before the vote by the Whips.
Was Kathryn’s posting too tricky for you, Martin?It’s only two sentences long and written in English. I should avoid, if you can, your own interpretation of what others clearly state. Not directly related to Collyarithmetic, I know, but, like the latter, is indicative of that inability to grasp a point which we have seen displayed on so many other occasions.
Perhaps, Martin, you are unfamiliar with British English. Are you perhaps a US citizen? If so, let us know and we’ll be understanding.
Ahh, the we again. As far as my interpretation, 1720, I am alive. I should leave your interpretation for those who are not.
Well, 1720 you lost, Kathryn lost. You lost by a landslide, but the voters were the ones to blame.
They always are, 1720.
Yet, they knew the policies and they knew who would be in charge if Labour had won. Don’t argue the toss with me, take it up with the guy who reported that there was no chance Labour would win, and then was pushed around the studios the next day trying to state it was a joke. Goodness, he must have worked for the Tory press. Nope, he was a Labour MP! Goodness he must have been kicked out. Nope, he has been promoted! And the subject of the joke? Oh yes, the Whip has been withdrawn by those who were supporting him to be PM to demonstrate they really didn’t think him fit to be PM!
Not tricky at all, 1720, although based on your previous grasp (lol) on recent UK political history, it may be for you.
But I suggest you may find xenophobia is as tricky as anti-Semitism.
The Labour Party sought via their motion to facilitate a future debate on fracking with the needs of their constituents (and the rest of humanity) in mind. The Tories chose popularism and political advantage and turned this into a confidence motion, careless of any needs but their own.
Are you saying anything in your 7.29 post, Martin? Such vacuous claptrap I last encountered at the Truss farewell speech. Is this your farewell?
Fracking will be in the downfall of this Conservative party.
It was certainly the downfall of Liz Truss, and I can’t see any other leader being daft enough to keep on the indolent Mogg at BEIS.
If we’d starting fracking 10 years ago, it would have been a success and would have added significantly to the UK’s energy security. Other countries with similar resources such as France would have followed suit and we wouldn’t be facing
Hilarious.
We actually started fracking 11 years ago and it wasn’t a success.
It led to the first moratorium because it caused an earthquake.
Don’t you lot do any research?
Refracktion, don’t forget it damaged the well too, leading to the first moratorium!
……this “eat or heat” emergency.
If we’d started fracking ten years ago we’d have used it all by now according to BGS/Notts University analysis 2019. And let’s be clear, fracking will not lower energy prices and would add very little, if anything, to energy security. But making buildings more energy efficient could reduce energy consumption by 26% and if the government had got on with this that would have made us a lot more energy secure, permanently. Pretty much wiping out the need for LNG imports. And more renewables would have further lowered consumption of expensive gas and provided more energy security.
Fracking is not the solution to our energy needs, that’s why all the opposition parties and so many Conservative MPs oppose it.
https://www.endfuelpoverty.org.uk/energy-efficiency-a-win-win-for-chancellors-spending-review/
KatT,
Technically you could be wrong on that one , regarding running out of shale gas within 10 years .
The more fanatical PRO-Fracker on here , could argue for arguments sake . UK shale gas could last for 100 years , if Gas produced was only used for refilling pocket Gas Lighters 🤣