Today’s Trident debate in the Commons made for a lively affair, as the SNP made their case for the government to veto plans to renew the nuclear deterrent. Not that they were keen on any other parties having their say during the event, with Labour’s John Woodcock and Jamie Reed struggling to find an opportunity to have their voice heard.
When Woodcock — who is fiercely pro-Trident — did get the chance to speak he didn’t mince his words, calling the SNP ‘robots’:
‘You see, I would have been happy to take every single one of you robots in getting your instruction, I would have been happy but the thing is Madame Deputy Speaker that the proposal of your motion refuse point blank to take me so I’m not taking any single one of you.’
https://soundcloud.com/spectator1828/john-woodcock-calls-snp-mps-robots
The SNP did not take kindly to the comments, with John Nicolson putting forward a point of order. However, to the surprise of SNP MPs, the Deputy Speaker declared that the term robot was fine — so long as Woodcock meant clever robots:
JN: Deputy Speaker could we have some clarification on whether the charming expression ‘robot’ is parliamentary language, or not?
DS: Yes Mr Nicolson, I was just turning over in my mind whether the description ‘robot’ for a member of this house would be considered to be derogatory, and I have come to the conclusion that in some circumstances it might, and in some it might not — and for the moment, I am concluding for my own peace of mind that the honourable gentleman was thinking of a high functioning intelligent robot, and therefore for the moment I will not call him to order.
Somehow Mr S suspects that it won’t be last time the word is uttered in the direction of the SNP.
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