Brexit news latest: Commons speaker John Bercow insists he is not biased against Brexiteers

John Bercow in the Commons on Wednesday night
AFP/Getty Images
James Morris28 March 2019
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Commons speaker John Bercow has denied being biased in Parliament and says he believes it is important "to give a voice to minorities".

In a wide-ranging interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica, Mr Bercow insisted he is "simply fair".

He added he has "consistently" shown his desire to hear all views on an issue including during the Brexit process.

In the interview, he said: "There was a time when Europhiles, pro-Europeans, used to criticise me years ago for selecting urgent questions from Brexit supporters when they were in a minority.

"And now the Brexit supporters criticise me for choosing questions or amendments from Remainers. So in other words, at different times, I've upset both sides.

"And like most Speakers, I think it's important to give a voice to minorities in the House, not just to the Government view or the majority view, but to the minority of the dissident view."

Declaring he is "impartial in Parliament but... not impartial about Parliament", he added: "If I'm biased, I'm biased in favour of Parliament. Parliament being heard. Parliament having a right to speak. Parliament having time. Parliament being respected by the Government of the day and indeed by the opposition."

Earlier this month, Mr Bercow's ruling over another vote on Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal earned him the title of "The Brexit Destroyer" in some parts of the press, along with a suggestion that he had potentially triggered a constitutional crisis.

He told the paper he was optimistic for the future of Britain, despite the current deadlock, and said British people showed resilience in times of crisis.

Elected as the 157th Speaker of the House of Commons in June 2009, Mr Bercow has become known for his caustic parliamentary put-downs.

Earlier this week, he sparked uproar in the Commons by aiming an "insult" at a Conservative MP.

The Speaker remarked that former minister Greg Hands "wasn't a very good whip" as he admonished the MP for Chelsea and Fulham for "disorderly" behaviour.

Mr Bercow insisted his actions in the Commons were not a performance.

"What you see is what you get," he added.

"I think that it is better to try to handle things with a degree of humour, if possible, rather than everything being deadly serious," he said.

Reporting by Press Association.

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