Govt rethink urged to allow MPs to question Cameron in Commons

LONDON: The Government has been accused of misreading the mood of MPs by rejecting calls for Foreign Secretary David Cameron to be scrutinised in the Commons chamber.

Conservative MP Karen Bradley urged ministers to rethink their approach and move forward with recommendations made by the Procedure Committee, which she chairs.Lord Cameron has faced regular questions from peers since he was appointed to the senior Cabinet position in November 2023, but current arrangements mean he cannot appear in the Commons chamber for similar scrutiny by MPs.

The Procedure Committee recommended that Lord Cameron should take questions from MPs at the “bar” of the House, the white line on the Commons floor from behind which visitors must not pass while Parliament is sitting.

The committee said Lord Cameron should appear for Foreign Office question time, for statements and urgent questions first in the Commons rather than the Lords, amid concerns about a lack of scrutiny of such a high-profile figure during a time of global turmoil.

But Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt said the Government would be “sticking with the usual precedents of both Houses”.Ms Bradley told the Commons: “The Government response to our report is most disappointing.

“It ignores the genuine concerns of many members of this House that the holder of one of the highest offices in the land, the Foreign Secretary, is unable to be scrutinised by all the

members of this House.” She went on: “The Government response misreads the mood of the House on this matter and undermines the principle of accountability of ministers to this democratically-elected House.

“I urge the Government to think again on our recommendations and to revisit this matter urgently.”Conservative former minister Sir Chris Chope, a member of the committee, added: “There’s strong anger on the committee not so much necessarily about the response from the Government, in that we expected that the Government might reject our recommendations, but the nature of that rejection and the failure to answer any of the points or put forward any detailed justifications for rejecting our recommendations.

“Does she agree with me that it almost makes us feel, as members of the committee, that we’re held in contempt by the Leader of the House?”Ms Bradley thanked the clerks for helping her to “tone down the response”.

Ms Mordaunt earlier defended the Government’s decision, saying: “Since the Foreign Secretary was appointed we have had eight FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) oral statements, three ministerial statements on foreign affairs, a general debate in Government time on the situation in the Red Sea and 17 Westminster Hall debates responded by FCDO ministers and oral questions in both Houses.

“We are sticking with the usual precedents of both Houses.”MPs could be heard shouting: “Why?” while shadow Commons leader Lucy Powell earlier noted: “With increasing global conflict, it is unacceptable that the Government has rejected the recommendations of the cross-party Procedure Committee for the Foreign Secretary to be accountable in this House.

“It is simply not the case that he or indeed the Government has been forward-leaning in this regard as the Leader says.”

Ms Powell added: “The Leader has many times in these exchanges assured that members would have the opportunity to question the Foreign Secretary, saying that, and I quote, when the Procedure Committee brings forward measures I am sure those measures will be put in place.“So why has she now blocked this or did she lose the argument in Government?”