Lots of ‘populists’ – Former ‘House Speaker’ John Bercow changes to Labor
John Bercow, 58, leaves the Conservative Party and joins the Labor Party
Quelle: Photo Alliance / ZUMAPRESS.com
“Order, order” – his calls for order made John Bercow very popular beyond the borders of Great Britain. Now the former parliament speaker is making a big fuss: he is leaving the Conservative Party under heavy criticism of Boris Johnson.
sA colorful tie made John Bercow a political pop star, notwithstanding his competent moderation of debates in the British Parliament.
Now, two years after his departure as “Speaker of the House” (as of 2019), the 58-year-old is making headlines once again: He is leaving the Conservative Party and joining Labour’s Keir Starmer. He announced this in a big interview with the “observer”, in which he also formulated violent allegations against his former party friend, Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Above all, he cares about his own progress. “He’s a successful activist, but he’s a bad prime minister,” he said. Johnson has absolutely no passion for improving the lives of those less fortunate than him. “People are tired of lies, they are tired of empty slogans,” this is his devastating verdict. His ex-boyfriends in his party also became fat.
Conservatives are “reactionary, populist, nationalist, and sometimes xenophobic.” That is why he joined the Labor Party a few weeks ago and now wants to fight for a change of government there. The Labor Party stands for “equality, social justice and universality” and, unlike the Conservative Party, is “credible”.
He was immediately welcomed into the Labor Party. Representative John McDonnell described Bercow’s treatment of lawmakers as “fair and unscrupulous.” He has earned our respect, especially for his fight to protect the rights of Parliament. A warm welcome to Labor,” McDonnell tweeted.
Meanwhile, conservatives tried to downplay Bercow’s departure. “To be fair with John Bercow, I think he left the Conservative Party a long time ago,” Attorney General Robert Buckland told Sky News. Indeed: John Bercow is considered an opponent of “Brexit”, and his wife Sally has been an activist in the Labor Party for years.
Why didn’t he move to the House of Lords
In his ten-year tenure as Speaker of the House of Commons, Bercow generously interpreted the rights of MPs, thus particularly causing trouble for former Prime Minister Theresa May.
At times a group of Brexit opponents in the conservative ruling party have managed to take over the legislative process with the help of the opposition in order to block the path to a no-deal Brexit.
When Johnson later put Parliament on enforced hiatus, Bercow found clear words. He said at the time that it was an “act of executive delegation”. The Supreme Court later sentenced him and declared the closure of Parliament illegal.
Johnson did not nominate Bercow as a comeback coach as a member of the House of Lords, as is usually the case with previous House Speakers. Berko is the first “speaker” in more than two centuries not to be awarded this honor.
The 58-year-old is personally controversial. For example, a 2018 report accused him of presiding over a parliamentary culture in which “bullying, harassment and sexual harassment” can thrive. “I think this suggestion (…) is completely wrong,” he told Sky News. There was one complaint against him that was dismissed.
Berko’s successor to the speaker’s chair, Lindsey Hoyle, apparently distanced himself from Bercow’s peculiar style when he was elected two years ago. Meanwhile, he, too, increasingly sees himself on the path of confrontation with the government.