{"id":7457,"date":"2020-11-11T15:32:40","date_gmt":"2020-11-11T15:32:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/politics\/?p=7457"},"modified":"2020-11-11T16:06:21","modified_gmt":"2020-11-11T16:06:21","slug":"im-sorry-did-i-starmer-coronavirus-in-parliament-and-oppositional-scrutiny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/politics\/2020\/11\/11\/im-sorry-did-i-starmer-coronavirus-in-parliament-and-oppositional-scrutiny\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019m Sorry, Did I Starmer? Coronavirus in Parliament and Oppositional Scrutiny"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Third year BSc Politics and History student Chris Mitchell blogs about the role of Her Majesty’s opposition during the pandemic<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Amidst the backdrop of the public health crisis that is the COVID-19 pandemic, the greatest test of national unity since WWII, a welcome wave of pragmatism is sweeping through the Labour Shadow Cabinet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COVID in Parliamentary Procedure<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the adversarial nature of UK politics, the Official Opposition\u2019s role has been its namesake; oppose by scrutinising (preferably constructively) and offering a shadow policy. <\/a>The Coronavirus Act 2020<\/a> was introduced to Parliament on 19 March and passed without a Commons vote, receiving royal assent on 25 March. The Act has allowed Boris Johnson\u2019s government to effectively bypass much of the standard Parliamentary scrutiny that it would normally go through. Some of this is understandable as the government needs to be able to respond quickly to the ever-changing health situation. However, many MP\u2019s have felt that Parliament has been side lined<\/a> over the course of the pandemic, leading to a sense of frustration amongst MP\u2019s of all parties. Since the Act was passed 121 of 188<\/a> Coronavirus-related Statutory Instruments have ignored the 21-day rule<\/a> and 38 have come into effect before even being laid before Parliament. The 1922 Committee of back bench Tory MPs gave procedural force to these concerns with the Brady amendment<\/a>. Yet ministers still dismiss these concerns with Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Commons leader, casually labelling the anxieties as \u201cabsurd\u201d<\/a>. Subsequently, Opposition scrutiny has become even more important over the course of the government\u2019s criticised handling of the pandemic; just 32% of people<\/a> think the government is handling COVID well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Scrutiny Strategy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Opposition\u2019s response to the government\u2019s pandemic handling began under Jeremy Corbyn, as Starmer wasn\u2019t elected Leader until 4 April. A stark contrast in Opposition scrutiny can be seen between them. If Corbyn\u2019s PMQ performances<\/a> were an impassioned, ideological wildfire then Starmer is a slow, controlled burn. Upon becoming Labour leader, Starmer stated in a victory speech<\/a> in the national interest \u201cUnder my leadership, we will engage constructively with the government\u201d and \u201cnot opposition for opposition\u2019s sake\u201d. The goal seemed to be to scrutinise government policy without continually undermining it during a national crisis in the name of tribalistic red vs blue politics. Considering Boris Johnson\u2019s majority of 80 and Labour\u2019s recent electoral failure, an Oppositional motion of no confidence during a health crisis is a no go. However, this was in the early days of COVID and recently Keir Starmer has gone on the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Appealing outside the Commons, Starmer publicly called<\/a> for a 2 to 3-week circuit breaker lockdown. Arming himself with the words of SAGE<\/a>, Starmer criticised the outsourced \u00a312Bn test and trace system as having \u201cmarginal impact\u201d; making it look as though the government was ignoring its own experts. Starmer has since posed basic questions<\/a> to Johnson during PMQs such as how the tier 3 lockdown could be exited. Boris Johnson responded with figures like the R number with a confused tone. With the poorly viewed government handling of the pandemic, the worry of sowing political division has ended, and the questioning of government competence is in full swing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further issues such as the provision of free school meals outside term time, championed by public figures like Marcus Rashford<\/a> are also being supported with competent Oppositional scrutiny. Recently the Shadow Education Secretary Kate Green poignantly criticised<\/a> the government, drawing contrast between children going hungry and the \u00a37000 daily pay<\/a> for test and trace consultants; addressing a key issue while also relating it directly back to the government\u2019s pandemic handling. Even when on the attack the Opposition seems more calculated and restrained in its responses, less reactionary than the previous leadership. Starmer\u2019s style seems to be rooted in his legal training, conducting PMQ\u2019s like a barrister, taking the PM\u2019s own words<\/a> and weaponizing them while remaining calm, with a flustered Boris avoiding direct answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nice Poll<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Johnson\u2019s career was made playing the role of a humorous, scruffy haired, social liberal. Against Corbyn, he looked down to earth. Juxtaposed, against the former head of the Crown Prosecution Service it is night and day. The verbal undressing Boris receives from Starmer on a near weekly basis has transformed his carefully crafted image from fun natured into a man described in Ashcroft polls<\/a> as \u201cout of his depth\u201d; making for soundbites that resemble Law and Order more than PMQ\u2019s. Members of the British press have picked up on this, labelling it as \u201cthe lawyer vs the showman<\/a>.\u201d And the thing is: it\u2019s working. Starmer has been polling higher<\/a> than Boris for preferred PM and the parties are now neck and neck in voter intention polls<\/a>. Considering the dramatic defeat Labour suffered last year, its worst in 79<\/a> years, such a resurgence in voter confidence is a ray of hope for the Labour Party. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on the last six months Keir Starmer looks set in PMQ\u2019s to continue doing what he has been doing for the last several months, owning a donkey.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chris Mitchell is a third year Politics <\/a>student at Canterbury Christ Church University.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

This blog was submitted as part of the assessment for Parliamentary Studies on 23 October 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parliamentary Studies is a third year module taught by Dr Paul Anderson<\/a>. The module is designed to give students an insider perspective to the workings of Parliament and focuses on topics such as diversity and representation, the devolved legislatures, and the impacts of events such as Brexit and Covid on parliamentary processes. This year\u2019s guest speakers have included Mark D\u2019Arcy, the BBC\u2019s Parliament correspondent, and former leader of the Scottish Labour Party, Kezia Dugdale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo credit: First virtual PMQs and Ministerial statement on Coronavirus 22\/04\/2020″<\/a> by UK Parliament<\/a> is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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