Green MP Hannah Spencer branded ‘b***h’ for calling out Parliament’s drinking culture | News Politics

Green MP Hannah Spencer has reportedly been branded a ‘b****’ by a fellow MP after criticising Parliament’s drinking culture.

The MP for Gorton and Denton prompted a backlash earlier this week after she revealed she felt ‘really uneasy’ about the prevalence of alcohol in Westminster.

The plumber-turned-politician, who won a hotly contest by election in February, claimed she can ‘smell the alcohol when people are in between votes’.

She went on to claim there had been ‘questionable and dangerous behaviour’ by staff and potentially some MPs because of Westminster’s ‘unprofessional’ drinking culture.

Among her critics were Labour’s Luke Charters, who dismissed the remarks as a distraction from what he described as the Greens’ ‘wacky policies’.

He may have been hinting at the party’s controversial pledge to legalise and regulate all drugs, including heroin and cocaine, should it win power.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage was equally scathing and joked that while the Greens supported legalising all drugs, ‘an afternoon pint’ was too far.

However, some MPs have come to her aid.

Former shadow cabinet minister Emily Thornberry said she was ‘surprised at the drinking culture’ when she first arrived at Parliament although she added that it is ‘much better than it used to be’.

The issue was later discussed on the BBC’s satirical panel show Have I Got News for You, where Ava Santina, the journalist who reported the story, discussed the backlash.

JOE.co.uk’s political editor said one MP had referred to Spencer as a ‘b****’, while others had accused her of being a ‘snitch’ for reporting it.

She said: ‘I went down to that room where they drink on Monday. There was a lot of: “Why are you snitching?” I didn’t say it, I just filmed it.’

She added that one MP told her: ‘She’s such a b****, this is the only time I get away from my children.’

Reflecting on the exchanges, Santina suggested that some MPs attempted to downplay the issue, saying: ‘All of the sort of robust defences that MPs made — we just have a beer here or there, we normally have coke (the soft drink).’

This prompted laughs from other panel members for the unintended insinuation that some MPs take the Class A drug.

Panellist Ian Hislop responded: ‘Now the story is getting interesting’, while comedian Paul Merton joked: ‘Is that why they say the “nos(e)” have it?’

Since the story was published, Spencer has continued to defend her comments, arguing that Westminster’s drinking culture would be unacceptable in most workplaces.

Speaking to The Guardian after the backlash, she said: ‘I don’t think it’s much to ask for an MP to be sober when they vote on decisions that affect everyone else. 

‘I’d have been sacked at work if I did this, same goes for almost every profession, but especially working-class jobs. 

‘MPs defending this and lecturing me are the exact reason I’ve been saying this place is full of people who are out of touch.’

Spencer is not the first MP to voice concerns about Parliament’s drinking culture.

In 2021, former Tory minister Tracey Crouch criticised Parliament’s drinking culture, saying she had witnessed MPs ‘reeking’ of alcohol between votes.

Parliament’s subsidised Strangers’ Bar – where MPs can drink between votes – closed temporarily last January after a report that a woman had her drink spiked.

This led to security measures being tightened. New rules mean that visitors and parliamentary staff can visit only with an MP present.

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