John Bercow, at his last ever PMQs, heard tributes from all sides of the house. ‘Best speaker I’ve seen,’ said veteran Ronnie Campbell. ‘You have stood up for democracy,’ oozed the SNP’s Ian Blackford. Tory Nigel Evans: ‘No one has done more to promote LGBT rights than you. I salute you.’ And he dipped his head like a nun honouring a marble Virgin. Jeremy Corbyn managed a dig at the Speaker’s self-regard.
‘I hope you’ll indulge me one moment while I say a word about you.’ He paused. ‘I’m sure you will.’
The best tribute came from Boris whose playfully ironic speech contained a charge-sheet of near-criminal acts. He started by praising Bercow’s ‘ten tumultuous years in your high chair’ – a swipe at the Speaker’s short stature.
Then came weightier criticisms. He called the Speaker vain, meddling and verbose. ‘You have been a player in your own right, peppering every part of the chamber with your thoughts and opinions’.
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