Months of political turmoil have ‘upset’ me – and MPs need to get back to their day job, Speaker tells Sky News
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has told Sky News that the last few months of political turmoil have “upset” him and he wants MPs to get back to their day job of serving their constituents.
Speaking to the Beth Rigby Interviews… programme, the Chorley MP said “we’ve never seen anything like this before” following turbulence which has seen three prime ministers in two months.
He admitted the “churn was unexpected” and although he was not angry about it, he was upset.
“I get upset because, in the end, it’s about the people of this country, the government has been elected and it’s our constituents who are going to suffer,” he said.
“We’ve got to look after them and stability is what we need now.”
The Speaker has the unusual position in the House of Commons of being non-partisan and they renounce all their political affiliations when taking office as they assume the responsibility of maintaining order during debates.
Sir Lindsay, who has been in place since 2019, believes the UK should “now hopefully have a settled period” and insisted there will not be a general election soon.
Opposition MPs have been clamouring for an election as they say there have now been two Conservative MPs – Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak – who have not been elected by the country.
He added: “There isn’t going to be an election, they’re the elected government and I just can’t see one happening soon.
“I genuinely believe people of this country need representation, I think and hope we’re going to go through a very calm period to ensure that.”
Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he would not ‘run around the jungle eating kangaroo’s testicles’
I’m not going to run around a jungle eating kangaroo’s testicles
The Speaker had some strong words for former health secretary Matt Hancock after he revealed this week he will be appearing on I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! – which got him suspended from the Tory parliamentary party.
“Would I do it? I’m a member of parliament, am I going to go running around a jungle eating kangaroo’s testicles? Absolutely not,” he said.
“No, no, I wouldn’t do it.”
But he said ultimately it is not what he thinks about the decision, it is what Mr Hancock’s constituents think as “they’re the people who matter”.
“He’ll come back and he’ll have to answer to his constituents,” he said.
“He’s made that decision and his constituents will make their voice heard, they’ll let him know what they think.”
Sir Lindsay was disparaging about Matt Hancock’s decision to go on I’m a Celebrity
I want this to be a workplace of respect
Sir Lindsay also spoke about allegations of abuse within parliament, saying any staff who come forward are supported and he is trying to make sure everyone is “respected and treated fairly”.
He admitted anything that “tarnishes” parliament’s image is “not good” as the general public look to politicians for leadership.
Sir Lindsay said standards “have got to improve and we have done things to make sure people can come forward”.
He added that the rules now mean people have the ability to report “without intimidation and to be assessed independently”.
Sir Lindsay said behaviour in parliament needs to improve but it is much easier for people to report abuse now
“I would encourage people to report – and people are reporting now more than they were,” he said.
He added if it is serious “go straight to the police, please report them and we do support people in the house”.
“I want this to be a workplace that’s respected, we’ve been trying to ensure people are treated fairly and there’s recognition and respect for everyone.
“We’ve got to make sure everyone’s looked after, not just MPs, it’s MPs’ staff and house staff – they’re important to me.”
Nine of a doctor’s 10 children have been killed in an Israeli missile strike on their home in Gaza, which also left her surviving son badly injured and her husband in a critical condition.
Warning: This article contains details of child deaths
Alaa Al Najjar, a paediatrician at Al Tahrir Clinic in the Nasser Medical Complex, was at work during the attack on her home, south of the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, on Friday.
Graphic footage shared by the Hamas-run Palestinian Civil Defence shows the bodies of at least seven small children being pulled from the rubble.
Rescuers can be seen battling fires and searching through a collapsed building, shouting out when they locate a body, before bringing the children out one by one and wrapping their remains in body bags.
In the footage, Dr Al Najjar’s husband, Hamdi Al Najjar, who is also a doctor, is put on to a stretcher and then carried to an ambulance.
The oldest of their children was only 12 years old, according to Dr Muneer Alboursh, the director general of Gaza’s health ministry, which is run by Hamas.
Nine children were killed in the strike. Pic: Palestinian Civil Defence
“This is the reality our medical staff in Gaza endure. Words fall short in describing the pain,” he wrote in a social media post.
“In Gaza, it is not only healthcare workers who are targeted – Israel’s aggression goes further, wiping out entire families.”
Pic: Palestinian Civil Defence
British doctors describe ‘horrific’ and ‘unimaginable’ attack
Two British doctors working at Nasser Hospital described the attack as “horrific” and “unimaginable” for Dr Al Najjar.
Speaking in a video diary on Friday night, Dr Graeme Groom said his last patient of the day was Dr Al Najjar’s 11-year-old son, who was badly injured and “seemed much younger as we lifted him on to the operating table”.
Hamdi Al Najjar, Dr Al Najjar’s husband who is also a doctor, was taken to hospital. Pic: Palestinian Civil Defence
The strike “may or may not have been aimed at his father”, Dr Groom said, adding that the man had been left “very badly injured”.
Dr Victoria Rose said the family “lived opposite a petrol station, so I don’t know whether the bomb set off some massive fire”.
Pic: Palestinian Civil Defence
‘No political or military connections’
Dr Groom added: “It is unimaginable for that poor woman, both of them are doctors here.
“The father was a physician at Nasser Hospital. He had no political and no military connections. He doesn’t seem to be prominent on social media, and yet his poor wife is the only uninjured one, who has the prospect of losing her husband.”
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Nineteen of Gaza’s hospitals remain operational, all of them are overwhelmed with the number of patients and a lack of supplies
He said it was “a particularly sad day”, while Dr Rose added: “That is life in Gaza. That is the way it goes in Gaza.”
Sky News has approached the Israeli Defence Forces for comment.
Read more:
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Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began when the militant group stormed across the border into Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and abducting 251 others.
Israel’s military response has flattened large areas of Gaza and killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.
World
UN’s Antonio Guterres condemns ‘teaspoon’ of aid allowed into Gaza after dozens die in airstrikes
The head of the UN has said Israel has only authorised for Gaza what amounts to a “teaspoon” of aid after at least 60 people died in overnight airstrikes.
UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said on Friday the supplies approved so far “amounts to a teaspoon of aid when a flood of assistance is required,” adding “the needs are massive and the obstacles are staggering”.
He warned that more people will die unless there is “rapid, reliable, safe and sustained aid access”.
A woman at the site of an Israeli strike in Jabalia, northern Gaza. Pic: Reuters
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Gaza: ‘Loads of children with huge burns’
Israel says around 300 aid trucks have been allowed through since it lifted an 11-week blockade on Monday, but according to Mr Guterres, only about a third have been transported to warehouses within Gaza due to insecurity.
The IDF said 107 vehicles carrying flour, food, medical equipment and drugs were allowed through on Thursday.
Many of Gaza’s two million residents are at high risk of famine, experts have warned.
Meanwhile, at least 60 people have been killed by Israeli airstrikes across Gaza overnight.
Ten people died in the southern city of Khan Younis, and deaths were also reported in the central town of Deir al-Balah and the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north, according to the Nasser, Al-Aqsa and Al-Ahli hospitals where the bodies were brought.
A body is carried out of rubble after an Israeli strike in Jabalia, northern Gaza. Pic: Reuters
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‘Almost everyone depends on aid’ in Gaza
The latest strikes came a day after two Israeli embassy workers were killed in Washington.
The suspect, named as 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, Illinois, told police he “did it for Gaza”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Mark Carney of fuelling antisemitism following the shootings.
The leaders of the UK, France and Canada are “on the wrong side of humanity and (…) history”, he said, after they threatened “concrete action” against Israel this week if it continues its “egregious” military operations in Gaza.
Mr Netanyahu also accused Sir Keir, Mr Macron and Mr Carney of siding with “mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers”.
Palestinians search for casualties in Jabalia, northern Gaza. Pic: Reuters
But UK government minister Luke Pollard told Sky News on Friday morning he “doesn’t recognise” Mr Netanyahu’s accusation.
Earlier this week, Mr Netanyahu said he was recalling negotiators from the Qatari capital, Doha, after a week of ceasefire talks failed to bring results. A working team will remain.
The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 251 others.
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The militants are still holding 58 captives, around a third of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals.
Israel’s offensive, which has destroyed large swaths of Gaza, has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.
A woman has been arrested after 12 people were reportedly injured in a stabbing at Hamburg’s central train station in Germany.
An attacker armed with a knife targeted people on the platform between tracks 13 and 14, according to police.
They added that the suspect was a 39-year-old woman.
Police at the scene. Pic: AP
Officers said they “believe she acted alone” and investigations into the stabbing are continuing.
There was no immediate information on a possible motive.
The fire service said six of the injured were in a life-threatening condition, three others were seriously hurt, and another three sustained minor injuries, news agency dpa reported.
The attack happened shortly after 6pm local time (5pm UK time) on Friday in front of a waiting train, regional public broadcaster NDR reported.
A high-speed ICE train with its doors open could be seen at the platform after the incident.
Railway operator Deutsche Bahn said it was “deeply shocked” by what had happened.
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Four tracks at the station were closed in the evening, and some long-distance trains were delayed or diverted.
Hamburg is Germany‘s second biggest city, with the train station being a hub for local, regional and long-distance trains.
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