‘It’s not acceptable!’ Furious Speaker fumes at Rishi for ignoring MPs

Sir Lindsay Hoyle has once again blasted the Government for making a big police announcement to the media before doing so in the House of Commons. Rishi Sunak unveiled a major new NHS workforce plan, with a new 15 year drive to recruit an additional 300,000 NHS staff on Friday. The Government trailed the big announcement to the media on Thursday night, with a televised press conference from Downing Street on Friday. However, Parliamentary rules dictate big announcements must be made to MPs first. Taking to the Speaker’s chair today, a furious Sir Lindsay Hoyle blasted Rishi Sunak for once again sidelining Parliament. Lindsay Hoyle blasted the PM (Image: Parliament TV) In an angry rant, he said: ‘I thank the Secretary of State for coming here to make a statement, it’s a pity the Prime Minister hadn’t done so on Friday where the world was meant to hear it before we do’. ‘The Prime Minister is a member of Parliament, he is answerable to members of parliament from all political parties, and I’ve got to say it is not acceptable. ‘He may well be the Prime Minister, but the members of Parliament should hear it first, so I’m very pleased the Secretary of State is doing it the right way.’ It wasn’t the first time Rishi Sunak has been at the receiving end of Lindsay Hoyle’s wrath. The PM announced the news on Friday outside Parliament during a No. 10 press conference (Image: Getty) In 2021, the Speaker blasted the then-Chancellor for leaking so much of his forthcoming Budget, saying it was ‘discourteous’. ‘I was disappointed to see more stories in the media today with apparently very well-briefed information about what will be in tomorrow’s Budget. ‘This House will not be taken for granted, it’s not right for everybody to be briefed, it’s not more important to go on the news in the morning, it’s more important to come here.’ Sir Lindsay also shouted down Mr Sunak during a recent Prime Minister’s Questions session, after the PM slammed Keir Starmer’s honours hypocrisy after elevating former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson to the House of Lords. The Speaker had to remind Rishi Sunak: ‘you’re not responsible for the other parties, you are the Prime Minister who is answering the questions, not asking the questions.’ While Sir Lindsay is prone to a furious intervention, many Tory MPs still prefer him over his prone-to-anger predecessor John Bercow.