John Bercow banned from Parliament for life

Chewbacca

^I think he is probably a volatile and demanding man who uses bad language and shouts a lot.^
Is it bullying? I'm not certain.

It would be in my place of work.

One of the incidents in the report describes him as being bad tempered and not speaking to the complainant during a plane journey. He says he was annoyed with himself. I've known people like that. They sometimes weren't nice to be around but their anger was directed at themselves.

No one deserves to be bullied in their workplace and therefore if he has been found to have bullied staff, he must accept the consequences. As should anyone who bullies their staff.

One of the incidents in the report describes him as being bad tempered and not speaking to the complainant during a plane journey. He says he was annoyed with himself. I've known people like that. They sometimes weren't nice to be around but their anger was directed at themselves.

Bullying is defined as:
Offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting
An abuse or misuse of power that undermines, humiliates, or causes physical or emotional harm to someone

The bullying might:

Be a regular pattern of behaviour or a one-off incident
Happen face-to-face, on social media, in emails or calls
Happen at work or in other work-related situations
Not always be obvious or noticed by others

Examples of bullying at work could include:

Someone has spread a malicious rumour about you
Someone keeps putting you down in meetings
Your boss keeps giving you a heavier workload than everyone else
Someone has put humiliating, offensive or threatening comments or photos on social media
Someone at the same or more junior level as you keeps undermining your authority

So, if Bercow or Patel, were angry at themselves they shouldn't be inflicting that anger on their colleagues for the duration of an 8 hour flight to Nairobi.

I think he was an excellent Speaker, but having seen him in several interviews, etc. I can well believe he is/was a bully. Pure hypocrisy for the same not to happen to PP.

That’s the thing, isn’t it? If parliament had a zero tolerance approach to bullying I’d be much happier than I am seeing Patel get away with it but Bercow sanctioned. On top of the parties and the oligarchs’ money, it just screams unfairness.

I cannot believe people can be sat in the most privileged seats in the UK and allow themselves to be bullied.
Give a bully as good as they give and they shrivel into the background what a bunch of wimps.

volver

DaisyAnne and Dickens, very good posts.

Agree. Rational posts.

All those who are saying he has got what he deserved…if he is a bully absolutely that is right, but those who are saying that are not saying why Priti Patel gets away with the same sin ???

Is she a nasty little woman ? A jumped twerp ?

No. She's just a workplace bully. Same as Bercow.

So why are the people who are calling JB these names care about her getting away with it ?

I don’t condone him at all let’s be clear.

No idea Lucca, I have no interest in the stature, or lack of it, in Bercow; nor have I any interest in what Patel looks like or any other personal identifier. I simply loathe bullies who, having been proven that they are bullies, then fail to face up to their inadequacies of social skills and apologise for the distress they've caused to their victims. Patel will, at some point I suspect, be forced to confront her bullying behaviour and will face the consequences. All chickens come home to roost.

Redhead56

I cannot believe people can be sat in the most privileged seats in the UK and allow themselves to be bullied.
Give a bully as good as they give and they shrivel into the background what a bunch of wimps.

Bullying is a form of abuse, people who are bullied regularly, yes even adults, are made to feel inadequate, it causes depression and mental health problems. Bullies can be sly, or open, when you’re around them, it’s like walking on eggshells. This pompous overinflated bully has got his just desserts. Shame on you for belittling those who were bullied.

I was interested but not surprised to hear on the news that he'd been found to be a bully but shocked to hear him called a liar! Somehow that felt much worse to me.

So you are suggesting, Redhead, people should have shouted and sworn back at Bercow, smashed their mobile phone, harangued him for fifteen minutes and thrown a tantrum because they considered themselves thwarted?

Then denied having done any of it ever?

I used to have some respect for Bercow because of the way he stuck by his dreadful wife after she humiliated him several times. A poster elsewhere suggests bullying in the workplace may be caused by deep personal unhappiness outside; this could explain, although not excuse, his behaviour.

Odious little creep with an embarrassment for a wife. Hope they both disappear over the horizon.

I don't think it will ever be acceptable to set up a committee just for one person. Everyone should be treated in the same way and everyone found guilty punished in the same way.

You really cannot let your friends and allies go unpunished and then set up a special court to find your enemy guilty, then apply exceptional and extreme punishment. That makes us more like Russia than a democratic country.

So you are suggesting, Redhead, people should have shouted and sworn back at Bercow, smashed their mobile phone, harangued him for fifteen minutes and thrown a tantrum because they considered themselves thwarted?

Maybe they should just have called him an odious little creep or a jumped up twerp. That seems to be the standard of debate today.

Or maybe its OK to do that on an anonymous social media site, because that's not really bullying and he asked for it?

Still waiting for someone to explain about Priti Patel…..

Or call her jumped up…or “little”

Sauce for the goose and all that.

It's the quality of evidence and the time lapse in the complaints I find questionable. If the committee had accepted some of Bercow's claims- that the post it notes miight have been added to, that there may have been collusion and certainly was discussion between the complainants it would still have been possible to find him guilty of bullying, but perhaps not enough to deny him a parliamentary pass.

Anyone else find it ironic that a man who certainly supported and upheld the traditions of parliament and insisted MPs respected them, is now denied entry. Whereas a man who has scorned, ignored, lied to and illegally prorogued parliament now occupies the highest seat in it?
"Curiouser and curiouser". said Alice

It does seem a rather extreme punishment.

Bullying in the workplace is never acceptable but other politicians have been accused of bullying too and not been banned from Parliament.

Anyone else find it ironic that a man who certainly supported and upheld the traditions of parliament and insisted MPs respected them, is now denied entry.

I always thought he was rather a showman but at least he did seem to have some authority.
Order, Order!

I think the time lapse in reportage of bullying, harassment and abuse by victims is well documented and understood trisher. It can, as you well know, take survivors many years to open up about what happened to them and can be for a whole host of reasons. Maybe read up on the Me Too movement if you're still unclear.

Looks like a number of the complaints against him were not upheld.

Chewbacca

I think the time lapse in reportage of bullying, harassment and abuse by victims is well documented and understood trisher. It can, as you well know, take survivors many years to open up about what happened to them and can be for a whole host of reasons. Maybe read up on the Me Too movement if you're still unclear.

Chewbacca no doubt that is so. But in this case the timing was also rather linked to other matters. Corbyn's proposing Bercow for a peerage for example. There is also an admission that one of the complainants telephoned another to say what they had done. These are not bullied or frightened people these are professionals with longstanding careers.
I have no doubt that Bercow is a demanding little man who likes his own way and probably does bully. I question the timing of the complaints because of the political repercussions. Had the investigating committee accepted some ofBercow's arguments I would have respected their judgement more.(honestly post it notes as evidence in a diary! Anyone who has used them knows they fall out sometimes, and have to be returned to the right place, sometimes go missing and sometimes need correcting. But apparently these were all correct and accurate and made at the time of the incident). As for discussing what happened I really don't believe these people didn't spend time talking aboout him.
As I said before undoubtedly some bullying but perhaps not enough to ban him from attending parliament.

Lucca

Still waiting for someone to explain about Priti Patel…..

Or call her jumped up…or “little”

Sauce for the goose and all that.

Plenty on the other thread, even disparaging the way she speaks, oh and the shoes she wears.

I've always thought of Priti Patel as rather a 'nippy sweetie' trying to put a bomb under some crusty civil servants who are stuck in their old ways of doing things. However, she apologised. No sign of Bercow doing that. He was pretty undignified at not getting a title on his retirement.