David Lammy 'not embarrassed' over past praise for John Bercow

Labour’s David Lammy insists he is NOT embarrassed over previously calling John Bercow an ‘inter-galactic hero’ after damning independent inquiry found the former Commons Speaker was a ‘serial bully’ and a liar

• Independent inquiry yesterday found John Bercow to be a ‘serial bully’ and a liar
• Former Commons Speaker rejected report’s conclusions, refused to apologise
• David Lammy previously described Mr Bercow as an ‘intergalactic hero’ in 2019
• He said he was not embarrassed by the remark and believes it was not a mistake 

Labour’s David Lammy has insisted he is not embarrassed over previously describing John Bercow as an ‘inter-galactic hero’.

The shadow foreign secretary said he believes the remark, made in 2019, was not a mistake despite an independent inquiry yesterday finding the ex-Commons Speaker was a ‘serial bully’ and a liar.   

Mr Lammy said the damning report into Mr Bercow’s behaviour was ‘disturbing’ and ‘very, very sad’. 

But he did not backtrack on his past praise for Mr Bercow who he said was ‘hugely popular, during the Brexit years’ and he ‘got on very well with him indeed’. 

It came as fellow Labour MP Barry Sheerman risked a backlash after he tweeted last night: ‘I believe that John Bercow was a great reforming Speaker of the House of Commons who deserves our thanks & respect.’ 

Labour’s David Lammy has insisted he is not embarrassed over previously describing John Bercow as an ‘inter-galactic hero’

The shadow foreign secretary said he believes the remark, made in 2019, was not a mistake despite an independent inquiry yesterday finding the ex-Commons Speaker was a ‘serial bully’ and a liar

The Labour frontbencher praised Mr Bercow in a tweet published in September 2019

Mr Bercow has been handed a life-time ban from holding a parliamentary pass but he has refused to apologise.  

The independent inquiry said that he would have been expelled from the Commons if he was still a sitting MP after upholding 21 separate allegations.

Mr Bercow described the investigation as a ‘travesty of justice’ before refusing to make any ‘faux apologies’, insisting he has nothing to say sorry for.

Mr Lammy tweeted in September 2019: ‘John Bercow is an inter-galactic hero. In this noisy world of moneyed oafs belching their jingoism, he brings style, civility, and Shakespearean rhyme. A true freestyler.’ 

He was confronted over the comments last night during an interview with Andrew Marr on LBC Radio. 

Mr Marr asked the Labour frontbencher if he still regarded Mr Bercow as an ‘inter-galactic hero’.

Mr Lammy replied: ‘Well, I am very, very sad today. I haven’t read the report in full but the bit that you have read, it’s disturbing and it’s very, very sad indeed.’

Told that he was a ‘big fan’ of Mr Bercow for a ‘long time’, Mr Lammy replied: ‘Definitely, I mean John Bercow was popular during, obviously hugely popular, during the Brexit years.

‘He was very good on issues of equalities, race. So I mean I got on very well with him indeed.

‘But, I have been bullied, I was bullied throughout schools, very, very serious allegations.’

Mr Marr said: ‘So you know what it’s like. So, I do my research as you know and you tweeted in September 2019, you said “John Bercow is an inter-galactic hero, in this noisy world of moneyed oafs, belching their jingoism”, good use of words there, “he brings style, civility and Shakespearean rhyme, a true freestyler”.

‘That was a big bog up, wasn’t it?’

Mr Lammy said: ‘No, because that was my experience of him and the experience of lots of people in the House and actually lots of people in the country.’

Asked if he was ’embarrassed’ by his past praise for Mr Bercow, Mr Lammy said: ‘No. I am not. It’s never a good thing to look back and say oh, I shouldn’t have done that because he was hugely, hugely popular and is.

‘However, the allegations of bullying, very serious, the report is clearly very serious, he has been suspended from the Labour Party and that must be right.’

Mr Bercow joined the Labour Party last year having previously been a Tory MP. Labour has suspended Mr Bercow’s membership pending further investigation.

Mr Bercow had appealed against the findings by Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Kathryn Stone to the Independent Expert Panel, which determines bullying sanctions.

But the experts upheld her verdicts on the allegations from three complainants, who were staff during the period 2009 to 2014, without exception.

The panel, chaired by former appeal court judge Sir Stephen Irwin, said: ‘The findings of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, which we have upheld, show that the respondent has been a serial bully.

‘His evidence in the investigations, the findings of the commissioner, and his submissions to us, show also that the respondent has been a serial liar.

‘His behaviour fell very far below that which the public has a right to expect from any Member of Parliament.’ 

Mr Bercow disputed the findings and insisted there is no reason for him to apologise.

‘I don’t believe in faux apologies, I don’t believe in apologising when I don’t think I have anything to apologise for,’ he said.

Source: Read Full Article