Speaker: John Bercow claims ‘conspiracy’ to keep him out of the House of Lords

Labour MP says Boris Johnson's refusal of peerage to former speaker may be 'a kind of bullying'

Former Commons speaker John Bercow has said it is “blindingly obvious” that there is a conspiracy to keep him out of the House of Lords.

Boris Johnson refused to follow a precedent stretching back hundreds of years by granting Bercow a peerage when he stood down in October, and a nomination by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is understood to be in doubt as a vetting committee considers allegations of bullying.

The ex-speaker’s former private secretary Angus Sinclair has become the third parliamentary official to submit a dossier of complaints to the House of Lords Appointments Commission, following the former Clerk of the Commons Lord Lisvane and ex-Black Rod David Leakey.

Asked on BBC Radio 4’s Broadcasting House whether he thought there was a conspiracy to block his elevation, Mr Bercow replied: “Oh yes, there’s no doubt about that. It’s blindingly obvious. In fact, it’s so obvious that only an extraordinarily clever and sophisticated person could fail to grasp it.”

But he said he had not given up hope of becoming Lord Bercow: ”I didn’t say that. You asked me whether there was a concerted campaign, whether there was a conspiracy, whether there was an organised effort and I said it is blindingly obvious that that is so. As to what the outcome will be, we shall have to see.

“There is no entitlement to go to the Upper House. Every speaker for the last couple of hundred years has been invited to do so, but there’s no entitlement. We shall have to see what happens.”

Labour MP and deputy leadership candidate Dawn Butler said today that Mr Bercow may himself be a victim of “a form of bullying” in being denied a peerage by Conservative ministers who blame him for throwing up obstacles to the Brexit process in parliament.

But housing secretary Robert Jenrick said there was no “obligation” on Mr Johnson to ennoble the former speaker and there should be a “high bar” for those entering the House of Lords.

Mr Bercow acknowledged having had two “disagreements” with Lt Gen Leakey during his time as the official responsible for maintaining order in the House of Lords, but insisted “neither remotely amounted to bullying” and there was no “regular rancour” between them.

“Almost eight or nine years later he is still moaning about the fact that we argued,” he said. “He was, from my point of view, a very marginal figure. He was a bit-part player in my day to day existence.”

And while he accepted his relationship with Mr Sinclair “did not work” because of differences over his efforts to modernise procedure, he said he believed they had parted on good terms.

“He was not bullied, there was no bullying,” said Bercow. “There was an honourable difference of opinion and that is the end of it.”​

Speaking on Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, Ms Butler said: “It is the norm that the speaker of the House is always given a peerage, so I think the first question for me is why hasn’t he been given a peerage from the Conservatives?”

The shadow women and equalities minister added: “I would like to know the reason why he wasn’t given a peerage. I suspect it’s actually do to with Brexit rather than anything else.

“The other thing is due process has to happen so if you accuse somebody of bullying there has to be due process.”

Ms Butler said: ”If John Bercow’s been accused of bullying then there needs to be due process and has he been found guilty or is it just an accusation? And I think those are the things that we have to go through.

“We really do need to ask the Conservatives why is it that you haven’t like everybody else ensured that the speaker of the house is given a peerage? Otherwise I think that is a form of bullying too.”

But Mr Jenrick told the programme: ​”The prime minister chooses individuals who could sit in the House of Lords as Conservative peers. There’s no obligation on the prime minister to make John Bercow a member of the House of Lords.”

“I think what’s important here is that there should be a high bar on anybody who ends up in the House of Lords as indeed in the House of Commons. The allegations against John Bercow need now to be investigated.”