DAILY MAIL COMMENT: A self-defeating, dark day for democracy

Rarely can Britain’s MPs have looked more preposterous and self-important than over Wednesday’s vote on the war in Gaza.

Most people will have been bemused by the chaotic, unedifying scenes in the Commons and the resultant fallout.

Our puffed-up politicians have few enough answers to the problems facing their constituents – the lifeless economy, creaking NHS, housing shortages or even the potholes on local roads.

So what makes them feel entitled to pronounce on the most intractable problem in geo-politics: the Palestine question?

The truth is, neither Israel nor Hamas give two hoots about what our elected representatives think. Indeed, the terror group has stated it doesn’t want peace.

DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Most people will have been bemused by the chaotic, unedifying scenes in the Commons and the resultant fallout

As anyone with eyes could see, the debate over whether or not to call for a ceasefire was simply a cynical opportunity for many MPs to posture and play political games.

But puerile as these events seemed, this was a dark day for British democracy.

In his conference speech last year, Sir Keir Starmer railed against ‘the shallow men of Westminster’ happy to bend or break the rules when it served their purposes.

Just four months later he stands accused of doing the same. By browbeating Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to rip up parliamentary conventions for his own political convenience, Labour’s leader has lost any claim to the moral high ground.

In letting Labour vote on its own Gaza motion, which called for a ceasefire while supporting Israel’s right to self-defence, Sir Lindsay helped his old party out of a jam.

This meant Sir Keir avoided a humiliating rebellion while courting favour with pro-Palestinian Muslim voters.

The Speaker has apologised for this jiggery-pokery, but his reputation for impartiality is ruined. Even if not forced to resign, he knows he is a busted flush.

Most disturbing, though, is Sir Lindsay’s claim that he broke the rules after warnings that Labour MPs faced violence by pro-Hamas thugs if they did not vote for a ceasefire. This couldn’t be more serious.

Setting aside parliamentary procedures in response to intimidation from Islamist extremists and their far-Left fellow travellers is not just intolerable, it is staggeringly self-defeating. It sends the message that political violence works.

If an MP is being threatened over a vote, isn’t the best thing to call the police and face it down? The more these thugs are appeased, the more they come for you.

The grim irony, of course, is that too many MPs – mostly Labour – have turned a blind eye to Muslim extremism in the past, preferring to shore up their votes. Now they are on the receiving end of that menace.

Without action, this threat will continue to distort our democracy. It can no longer be brushed under the carpet.

Don’t shoot messenger

The whole point of the Government having a watchdog is so it barks when something is wrong.

The proper response by ministers is to respond to their alarm calls, not have them put down for making too much noise.

Home Secretary James Cleverly arrives at Downing Street on February 6

You might think Home Secretary James Cleverly would have thanked David Neal, the independent borders inspector, for exposing serious failures in the immigration system. In one troubling example, Mr Neal warned that hundreds of criminals, illegal immigrants or extremists may have entered Britain on private and chartered jets without passports or other checks.

Well, think again. The Home Office sought to bury, rather than publish, the report, so Mr Neal blew the whistle to this newspaper. For speaking out, he was abruptly sacked. Talk about shooting the messenger.

The hapless department said Mr Neal had ‘lost the confidence’ of Mr Cleverly. If the Home Secretary keeps covering up what are clear dangers to national security, the public will quickly lose confidence in him.