UK Parliament / Open data

No Confidence in Her Majesty’s Government

Proceeding contribution from Lord Coaker (Labour) in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 16 January 2019. It occurred during Debate on No Confidence in Her Majesty’s Government.

I will not give way, because loads of people want to speak and I want to be fair to them.

It is only because of those policies that those things happen. People across the country realise that. I will stand on what my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition says is important for this country—I am perfectly happy to do that—but I will also list the voting record of every single Conservative Member and tell the people of this country what they voted for. We see the consequences of those policies every single day.

Let me just say this with respect to the Prime Minister. We are debating a motion of no confidence, which is not likely to be passed. It is a constitutional and political dilemma for this country that we as a House are going to say we have confidence in a Prime Minister we have no confidence in. This is a complete and utter constitutional fiasco. The majority yesterday was 230, yet the Prime Minister clings on. She says she is the person to deliver a Brexit. I think there is a parliamentary majority for a sensible way forward, but we do not have a Prime Minister who can deliver that parliamentary majority. That is the problem she has: she is in hock to a part of her party that prevents her from building consensus across Parliament.

I wonder what the result of the vote tonight would be if the motion before us was one of no confidence in the Prime Minister’s ability to deliver the Brexit this country needs or to take this country forward. For many, such a motion, rather than one of general no confidence in the Government, would pose a real dilemma. The Prime Minister needs to reach out. She needs to build consensus, starting with the Labour Front Bench and other parties in Parliament. In that way, she might be able to bring the country together and take us forward in a united way.

4.25 pm

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
652 c1225 
Session
2017-19
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
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