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Watch: 2019 Tories queue up to condemn ‘leftie lawyers’

Parliament TV

Happy birthday Lindsay Hoyle. The Speaker of the House was bombarded with such messages today as he celebrated his 64th birthday by granting an urgent question to Yvette Cooper on the accommodation of asylum seekers at Napier Barracks. Last week, six asylum seekers won a legal challenge against the government after a judge ruled that their accommodation in the barracks failed to meet a minimum standard. 

Today MPs clashed over whether or not such accommodation was justified with Cooper claiming the Home Office was guilty of ‘ignoring public health advice in the middle of a pandemic and putting public health at risk.’ A trio of Tories led the counterattack on Labour. First up was Tom Hunt, MP for Ipswich and a staunch member of the Common Sense Group which recently published a blistering ‘anti-woke’ manifesto. Taking aim at opposition parliamentarians, Hunt said:

I see this issue about public health in a pandemic as a little bit of a distraction technique, frankly.

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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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