It seems that the Starmer army have once again been caught trying to be too clever by half. Earlier today, Labour sought to exploit Tory woes over sewage by tabling a motion in an opposition day debate. The motion called for the government to set a target for the reduction of sewage discharges, implement financial penalties and carry out an impact assessment of such discharges.
Stung perhaps by the debacle of October – when an opposition day debate ultimately precipitated Liz Truss’s resignation – the government opted to not object to those arguments. However the Labour motion included a fourth part that would have given the opposition the ability to take control of the Commons order paper in future and introduce legislation of their own. The Tories instead submitted their own amendment backing Labour’s first three points but dropping the fourth that would have given the opposition the freedom to change the law.
The Labour whips appear to have not realised that the government’s new amendment would end up being voted on first under parliamentary rules because it merely deleted text rather than added to it. The government passed its amendment by 290 votes to 188 and then forced a division on the opposition day motion as it now stood. Labour MPs were then told to abstain on their own opposition day motion because the government had successfully amended it in their favour.
In the end, Labour’s opposition day amendment passed with 286 votes thanks to Tory MPs. The Conservatives can now claim that Labour MPs refused to back plans to reduce sewage discharge, as their own motion originally called for. What a waste by Labour…
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