Labour MPs were left in an awkward silence as an Andy Burnham joke was shouted in the Commons during the King’s Speech ceremony.
Scottish Labour MP Torcuil Crichton could be heard yelling, “Not now, Andy!” as the Black Rod knocks on the Commons door.
The joke was a reference to the Manchester Mayor, who is said to be seeking a seat in Parliment to launch a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer.
Defence Secretary John Healey appeared unamused and stony-faced while Reform UK’s Sarah Pochin grinned from ear to ear.
As part of the centuries-old ritual, the Black Rod approaches the Commons chamber to summon MPs to hear the King’s Speech, only for the doors to be slammed shut in their face.
After knocking three times with the ceremonial black staff, Black Rod is finally admitted.
The ceremony symbolises the independence of the House of Commons from the Crown, rooted in the constitutional crisis that followed Charles I's attempt to arrest MPs in 1642.
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