How to Annoy The Serjeant

The return of September sittings was debated yesterday after PMQs. Lord Lucan hears that Palace Authorities were getting a bit hot under the collar that the motion would be passed. Casting ones mind back to the last time these sittings took place one can see why. The place was a bomb site. In particular the Committee Corridor had its carpet up and MPs and their guests were joined by builders in high visability jackets. Furniture from rooms in the process were dumped in any available corridor space. Health and Safety would have shut the building down if they had seen it as it was a death trap. So when the idea of a return to September sittings came round again the powers were slightly worried. Although it seemed that MPs did not want them to return on the whole there was always a slim chance. It would have meant that the many ongoing works on the Parliamentary Estate would have had to stop. The place made respectable and added to all this there would be those pesky MPs about and a cost to. Martin Slater in his speech put the cost last time at £2.5m. Anyway, after much debate the House of Commons divided and the Palace Authorities breathed a sigh of relief as September sittings were banished to the realms of history by 354 to 122. However, one can be assured that the 122 MPs who trooped down the aye lobby are off the Serjeant at Arms' Christmas Card list and shouldn't be expecting any favours for a while. For a list of those blacklisted MPs click here