New Labour smear Shadow Chancellor

Labour MP Dennis Skinner has been banned from the Commons for the rest of Thursday for accusing shadow chancellor George Osborne of snorting cocaine.

The claim came as Mr Osborne took on ministers at Treasury questions.

Referring to the 1980s, Mr Skinner said: "The only thing that was growing then was the lines of coke in front of Boy George and the rest of the Tories."

Speaker Michael Martin told Bolsover MP Mr Skinner to leave the chamber when he refused to withdraw the remark.

The MP also said coalfield areas would have "thanked their lucky stars" for the 1.75% growth now being forecast for this year by Chancellor Gordon Brown.

Mr Martin demanded he withdraw his claim but the veteran MP referred to Sunday newspaper claims - denied by Mr Osborne - that he had taken cocaine.

Mr Skinner said: "That was in the News of the World and you know it."

He continued to refuse when Mr Martin repeated his demand, saying: "No, I'm not withdrawing it ... it's true".

The speaker told him to withdraw the comment or leave the chamber, eventually saying: "I order you to leave the chamber."

Mr Martin also officially "named" the MP but added - the first step towards punishment: "He's withdrawing, he's taken my advice... I know what I've done, he's moved and that's the main thing."

The speaker's office later confirmed that Mr Skinner would be unable to return to the Commons chamber for the rest of the day.


Mr Skinner has earned the nickname "the Beast of Bolsover" for his acerbic attacks on the Tories from his regular front row seat in the Commons chamber.

He has been upbraided in the Commons chamber before, and has been asked to leave nine times since 1979, including a five-day ban in 1981.

In 1992, he was thrown out for calling then Agriculture Minister John Gummer a "little squirt of a minister" and a "wart".

And he was banned for the rest of the day in 1995 when he accused ministers of a "crooked deal" to sell off the coal industry.

ED: If you you can't beat them then smear them.