New Speaker in angry TV interview spat

New Commons Speaker John Bercow has chaired his first Prime Minister's Questions. He took a tough line with MPs when exchanges between Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Tory leader David Cameron became too rowdy. "There is simply far too much noise," he warned them. "The public doesn't like it and neither do I." Minutes later he told an over-excited Tory MP Michael Fabricant: "You must calm yourself, this is not good for your health." The boisterous exchanges came as Mr Cameron called on the Prime Minister to say sorry to the Commons for having claimed that Government capital expenditure will rise between now and the Olympics, when Treasury figures show it will fall from £44 billion to £26 billion. Mr Brown retorted that capital spending had been brought forward because of the recession and accused Mr Cameron of planning 10 per cent cuts in public spending. Mr Cameron said the PM had been "caught absolutely red handed" but was "not a big enough man" to admit he had given incorrect information to MPs. Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg accused Mr Brown of "dressing up cuts as investment" but the Prime Minister told him it was right to invest in homes and jobs at a time of low inflation and interest rates. After PMQs Mr Bercow made a brief statement calling for the House of Commons to have an atmosphere of "calm, reasoned debate" in the future. He also told the Government that ministerial policy statements should be made to Parliament first and not released beforehand. And he hinted that ministers in the Lords, such as Business Secretary Lord Mandelson, could be required to give statements to MPs in the Commons. Mr Bercow said it would require a change in the rules but it was an issue the Commons Procedure Committee "might wish to consider".

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ITN | June 24, 2009

Tags:. .lords. .calling. .expenditure. .incorrect. .boisterous