The Wardman Wire

A motion to exclude MEPs from the Westminster Parliamentary Estate was passed on Tuesday evening:

15 Access to Parliament (United Kingdom Members of the European Parliament)

Resolved, That the Resolutions of the House of 30 January 1989 relating to House of Commons Services and 6 December 1991 relating to Access (Former members and United Kingdom Members of the European Parliament) shall cease to have effect insofar as they relate to United Kingdom Members of the European Parliament.—(Mr Bob Blizzard.)

This reverses a policy of 20 years standing, which has stood under both Conservative and Labour administrations. According to the BBC, Harriet Harman, Leader of the House of Commons, is claiming that it is about “Pressure Facilities” (presumably meaning “pressure on facilities”):

Commons leader Harriet Harman said the decision was made after a review of the rules relating to passes, and concern about pressure facilities.

Ms Harman says it applies to all parties. Thirty MPs signed a motion signed a motion backing the move.

This seems to me to be distinctly peculiar, as I can detect nothing which would have caused a change in pressure at this point. I think Harriet Harman is dissembling, and is actually trying to kick the BNP under the table while denying that she is doing so.

The BBC have not mentioned that 27 of the 30 signatories on the EDM were Labour.

John Mann MP is specifically linking the decision to the BNP (again, from the BBC):

Labour backbencher John Mann, who tabled the Early Day Motion, said he was “delighted” by the result of the vote: “This stops the BNP parading round here as if they’re legitimate politicians.”

This claim has credibility for the change in policy has credibility, since it was in response to an Early Day Motion tabled by John Mann on June 10th, exactly 6 days after the BNP won their two seats in the European Parliament:

EDM 1636

WESTMINSTER PARLIAMENTARY PASSES FOR MEMBERS OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THEIR STAFF
10.06.2009

Mann, John

That this House notes that the number of parliamentary passes available for the staff of hon. Members and Peers is necessarily limited; further notes that Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are allocated passes to the parliamentary estate, but that hon. Members are not allocated passes to the European Parliament; and believes that it is unnecessary for MEPs or their staff to be allocated House of Commons passes and that new MEPs should not therefore be issued with such passes.

The whole thing seems distinctly peculiar, not to say whiffy.

This motion is also couched in terms of relieving pressure on resources, with no more credibility than Tuesday’s decision. The number of British MEPs was actually reduced from 78 to 72 in the Euro Elections this year, which reduced the alleged “pressure on resources”. This is about kicking the BNP.

A comparison with Sinn Fein, who were granted access to Parliamentary facilities and funds in 2001 by Mr Blair and his friends, is startling, when the Oath of Allegiance was suspended at the same time for the Sinn Fein MPs. The leaders of Sinn Fein had spent decades as apologists for murder, never mind the fact that many of their party members and leaders had been heavily themselves?

Is Nick Griffin really a greater threat than the leaders of Sinn Fein were then, or is this a case of political circumstances changing cases?

I can’t resist quoting what Mr Quentin Davies, now a Member of the Government, then a Conservative MP, said at the time: What it would amount to is giving Sinn Fein an enormous propaganda victory.

The right of MEPs to access the Parliamentary Estate has existed for 20 years, and to withdraw it for the sake of denying an iota of publicity to a couple of racists with a brainstorm in crumpled suits gives the appearance that someone is running scared, and feeds the BNP propaganda line. To then refuse to admit the real reason is bizarre.