'Serial bully and liar' John Bercow banned from Parliament after abusing and humiliating colleagues

Watch:‘Liar’ Bercow banned from having Parliamentary pass after bullying claims upheld

The former speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow has been banned from Parliament after an investigation said he was a "serial bully" and a "serial liar".

On Tuesday, the Independent Expert Panel found him guilty of bullying allegations, saying if he was still an MP “he should be expelled”.

The panel upheld the findings of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Kathryn Stone.

Bercow said the investigation was a “travesty of justice” and described it as “amateurish”.

The panel's report said: “It is for historians to judge whether the respondent was a successful reforming Speaker of the House of Commons.

“However, there was no need to act as a bully in order to achieve that aim. A great office can be filled forcefully and effectively without descending to such behaviour.

“The findings of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, which we have upheld, show that the respondent has been a serial bully.”

The report accused Bercow of being a “serial liar” and said “his behaviour fell very far below that which the public has a right to expect” from an MP.

Bercow’s conduct “was so serious that, had he still been a Member of Parliament, we would have determined that he should be expelled by resolution of the House”, the report said.

Read more: John Bercow has bullying complaint filed against him by former official which 'would impact his peerage'

In a statement, Bercow said: “Parliament is supposed to be the highest court in the land. This inquiry, which lasted a ghastly 22 months at great cost to the taxpayer, has failed it dismally.

“At the end of it, the panel has simply said that I should be denied a parliamentary pass which I have never applied for and do not want. That is the absurdity of its position.

“Don’t fall for the establishment spin that I have been banned for life. I can still attend debates with the help of a friendly passholder or go as a member of the public.

“It is a travesty of justice and brings shame on the House of Commons.

The Independent Expert Panel rejected appeals by Bercow over bullying against three people – Lord Lisvane, the former Commons clerk, Angus Sinclair and Kate Emms – and accused him of an “abuse of power”.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards had upheld 21 allegations against Bercow across the three complainants.

The panel concluded that the bullying and harassment policy “was breached repeatedly and extensively by the most senior Member of the House of Commons”.

It said: “In all, 21 separate allegations were proved and have been upheld.

“The House may feel that his conduct brought the high office of Speaker into disrepute.

“This was behaviour which had no place in any workplace.

“Members of staff in the House should not be expected to have to tolerate it as part of everyday life.

“No person at work, however senior, indeed particularly such a senior figure, should behave in this way. This was an abuse of power.”

Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union which represents senior civil servants, said bullying had “flourished unchallenged” under Bercow.

“No remorse, no contrition and willing to sacrifice the first independent process that investigates complaints, simply to save his own reputation," said Penman.

“No wonder bullying flourished unchallenged under his time as Speaker."

Bercow, who stood down as speaker in 2019 and was replaced by Sir Lindsay Hoyle, appealed against the commissioner’s findings to the IEP.

But it upheld her verdicts without exception.

In a statement, Stone said: “I am grateful to the Independent Expert Panel for their detailed and considered report regarding the conduct of Mr Bercow.

“Their report upholding my findings demonstrates my ongoing commitment to ensuring that the investigations under my oversight, and my subsequent decisions, are independent, impartial, thorough and fair.”

In a statement on Tuesday, Emms said she was “supremely glad to be vindicated by the report”.

“The impacts of the one and only genuinely horrible, undermining and consistently upsetting period of my career has spread into all areas of my life,” she said.

“Stress, anxiety and loss of confidence sent me home on sick leave and affected how I saw myself and how I felt I was seen by family, friends and colleagues.”

Ms Emms said the report concluded a “saga” involving “an intense period of bullying inflicted a long time ago” and “10 years of professional and personal rehabilitation”.

The “final straw”, she said, was Bercow’s “unspeakably self-serving account in his memoirs”.

She added: “It is painful but gratifying to read such a comprehensive analysis with such clear and unequivocal conclusions.”