Boris Johnson's ‘Super Saturday’ showdown cost taxpayers £115,000
Opening the Commons for Boris Johnson’s "super Saturday” Brexit showdown cost £115,000, the Standard reveals.
The sitting on October 19 — a last-ditch attempt to pass the EU withdrawal bill by October 31 — was the first time the house sat on a Saturday since 1982.
A Freedom of Information request shows the House incurred £115,563 in extra staffing and broadcasting costs. However, the bill was not passed.
Labour’s Meg Hillier, the most recent chairwoman of the Public Accounts Committee, said: “Had the Government just waited until the Monday it would have made little difference.”
A Government spokesman said: “The October Saturday sitting was meant to give MPs the opportunity to pass a Brexit deal which had just been agreed, but instead MPs went back on their word and voted for more dither and delay.”
