Speaker Lindsay Hoyle reacts after febrile PMQs as Boris Johnson defends himself over Partygate

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle exclaimed ‘what a day!’ as he finished overseeing a febrile Prime Minister’s Questions amid fallout from Partygate.

Sir Lindsay was forced to repeatedly intervene in the chamber today as excitement and emotions boiled over following the shock defection of Tory MP Christian Wakeford to Labour.

He rose several times to silence MPs shouting advice and abuse across the floor – and was forced to shut down labour leader Sir Keir Starmer for using the Queen as a way of attacking the Prime Minister.

The Labour leader attempted to compare the behaviour of the monarch sitting alone at the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh to Mr Johnson’s actions linked to Downing Street party allegations.

But Sir Lindsay Hoyle insisted discussions about the royal family were not matters for MPs to get into and stopped the Prime Minister from needing to answer the claims.

Later he also cut in as SNP MP Peter Grant quoted a constituent calling the Prime Minister a liar.      

Sir Lindsay was forced to repeatedly intervene in the chamber today as excitement and emotions boiled over following the shock defection of Tory MP Christian Wakeford to Labour.

He rose several times to silence MPs shouting advice and abuse across the floor – and was forced to shut down labour leader Sir Keir Starmer for using the Queen as a way of attacking the Prime Minister.

The Labour leader attempted to compare the behaviour of the monarch sitting alone at the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh to Mr Johnson’s actions linked to Downing Street party allegations.

Later he also cut in as SNP MP Peter Grant quoted a constituent calling the Prime Minister a liar.

Erskine May – which outlines parliamentary procedure – states: ‘No question can be put which brings the name of the sovereign or the influence of the Crown directly before Parliament, or which casts reflections upon the sovereign or the royal family.’ 

Questions are allowed on matters such as costs to the public of funding royal events and royal palaces.

Sir Keir said: ‘Last year Her Majesty the Queen sat alone when she marked the passing of the man she’d been married to for 73 years, she followed the rules of the country that she leads.

‘On the eve of that funeral, a suitcase was filled with booze and wheeled into Downing Street, a DJ played and staff partied late into the night.

‘The Prime Minister has been forced to hand an apology to Her Majesty the Queen.

‘Isn’t he ashamed that he didn’t hand in his resignation at the same time?’

But Speaker Sir Lindsay, intervening, said: ‘We normally would not, quite rightly, mention the royal family. We don’t get into discussions on the royal family.’

Mr Johnson added: ‘Well in that case, Mr Speaker, I must ask (Sir Keir) to withdraw it.’

Sir Lindsay said he had dealt with it before Mr Johnson got back to his feet and tried to say some more.

But Mr Johnson was pulled back to his seat by Chancellor Rishi Sunak tugging on the Prime Minister’s jacket.

Mr Grant, the MP for Glenrothes, told the stories of constituents unable to comfort the bereaved, or tell relatives of the loss of a loved one in person, be with loved ones before they died, and those who grieved for loved ones alone.

He said: ‘In their words, not mine, in their words, the Prime Minister is a charlatan, a hypocrite and a liar. What will he now say to my constituents?’

Sir Lindsay cut in and said: ‘I know you are repeating what your constituents said. I want more moderate and temperate language.’

He said the Prime Minister might want to deal with the general question and not the end.

Boris Johnson said: ‘I understand the feelings that he has relayed to me, as I said last week, and I sympathise very deeply with the feelings and I understand why people feel as they do.

‘I thank people very much for everything they have done. I recognise the enormous sacrifice that people have made. I apologise for misjudgments that may have been made in Number 10 by me and anybody else. Please can I ask him to wait for the inquiry to conclude.’