Dressing down

Lucy Kenningham | 1st November 2021 | Comment, Diplomacy, Social Wire, Uncategorised

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 11: Speaker of The House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle walks through the Central Lobby on the way to the House of Lords to listen to the Queen's Speech during the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster on May 11, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Stefan Rousseau - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Sir Lindsay Hoyle is on a mission to sharpen MPs' dress sense, but will clothes alone inspire better behaviour?

Four years ago, the US Congress allowed women to wear sleeveless tops. The French Parliament has dispensed with the requirement for men to wear suits and ties. Germany’s Bundestag has never had a dress code and relies instead on convention, as does the European Parliament where over the years MEPs have sported a range of slogan t-shirts.

Across the equator, South America has had a host of casually-dressed leaders. The President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega and El Salvador’s leader Nayib Bukele both flaunt baseball caps of varying descriptions (they are aged 75 and 40 respectively).

Former Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow removed the prescription for men to wear neckties – a move speculated to be partly due to accessibility issues faced by a newly-elected MP with cerebral palsy.

However, British MPs’ return to parliament this September has been accompanied by a new direction from current Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who has stressed that the standards are now “business attire”. This means jeans, chinos, sleeveless shirts, trainers, casual shoes and t-shirts are all out. Ties are not mandatory, but they are encouraged. “Extra large handbags” are forbidden – although no exact measurements appear in the guidance.

Hoyle, along with Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing, has been giving increasing numbers of rebukes to casually-dressed MPs since the start of the pandemic (and …

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