THE furore over Dawn Butler MP suggesting that the PM was/is a congenital liar and the praise she has received for doing so bemuses me.
I am bemused because she is doing what almost any member of the public would do when faced with blatant untruths – calling them out!
I am bemused that this “Gentleman’s Club”, aka Westminster, is allowed in the 21st century to get away with attitudes that were out-dated when Pitt the Elder was still in nappies!
We are told that no Honourable Member can be called a liar in a chamber filled with cheats, fabricators, falsifiers, prevaricators, equivocators – and that is just the Tory front bench!
READ MORE: Labour MP praised for 'resilience' after saying Boris Johnson lies
Is it any wonder that corruption on an industrial scale has been rampant since this cabal got into office if our elected representatives are unable to call out what any five-year old could tell you was a “fib”.
I don’t see Dawn Butler as a brave upholder of the “truth” in the face of establishment pressure. I see her as an MP who is finally doing her duty for her constituents. The rest of these “honourable” members who do NOT call out these lies are as culpable as those who perpetrate them .
So the Speaker will send them from the chamber like a naughty child – big deal! If this happened every time a blatant lie was heard in that place and every MP responded by calling out “Liar, liar!” there would soon be a change in these medieval practices.
Changes in this anachronism that passes for a parliament is LONG overdue. This is simply one of the most egregious and harmful to good governance and should be remedied ASAP.
James Mills
via email
LAST week in Westminster Labour MP Dawn Butler was forced to leave the House of Commons during PMQs because she had the audacity tell the truth by calling the Prime Minister a serial liar. This is a man who wouldn’t know the truth if his life depended on it.
A criminal who lies in court can be charged with perjury which can lead to severe punishment. Surely our political leaders should be held to a higher standard than some ne’er do well?
It is totally bizarre that parliament considers that challenging someone’s lies is wrong but telling lies repeatedly is acceptable.
READ MORE: Chris Stephens's weak joke contrasted sharply with principled stand
I praise Dawn Butler for confronting Boris Johnson’s lies. The sad thing is the lack of support she had from the opposition benches. In recent months it has only been SNP MP Ian Blackford who has challenged the Prime Minister on a consistent basis. Meanwhile this corrupt and inept Tory government continue to wreak havoc on the country.
Harry Key
Largoward, Fife
DAWN Butler deserves all the plaudits she has received for refusing to retract her claims that the Prime Minister has continually lied to the House of Commons. She has reminded us of the ridiculously archaic rules of the House that masquerade as historical tradition or parliamentary etiquette, and that Boris Johnson and his government have normalised mendacious conduct to the point where it is routinely unremarkable.
The acceptance by SNP MPs of the whole rotten structure of Westminster, whether it is the transparently unfair first-past-the-post system of election or the anachronistic waste of space that is the House of Lords, was raised recently by the excellent David Pratt. It is high time we stopped playing the parliamentary game by their self-serving rules.
READ MORE: Truth is the real victim in Boris Johnson’s UK sewer
When the indomitable Ms Butler was ordered to leave the House, this ought to have sparked a widespread walk-out in sympathy with her by all opposition MPs. It appears that even when it is patently obvious that the emperor has no clothes, too many MPs are unwilling to muster any genuinely moral professional courage and stand up for decent values and propriety.
Unless SNP MPs and other members of the opposition are willing to make their feeling known in as blunt a manner as possible, liars like Johnson will continue to mock any remaining pretence of a parliamentary democracy in the UK.
Owen Kelly
Stirling
WELL done to Dawn Butler MP for refusing to retract the statement she made in the Commons that Boris Johnson is a liar. Just a pity that the rest of the opposition parties, including the SNP didn’t walk out in support. An opportunity missed.
DA Henderson
via email
I WAS heartened by Kenny Henderson’s letter in Saturday’s National (Butler set an example to the lapdogs in the SNP). I supported the SNP for more than 50 years until I cancelled my membership last year as I felt that the gaining of independence was no longer the raison d’être of the party.
In the same issue, I notice that Ian Blackford continues to rage against Boris and his crew. What the SNP MPs should have been doing was using the term liar repeatedly, with all the SNP members walking out together – although I believe that the SNP MPs should have already pulled out of the place. But I suspect life is very comfortable for them.
N M Shaw
Edinburgh
WELL done Dawn Butler. Pity our SNP MPs don’t have the guts to do that!
D MacEanruig
Glasgow
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel