MPs could be allowed to breastfeed in the chamber of the House of Commons after the new speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, said he would have no objection.
Breastfeeding is currently banned on the green benches, despite a report in 2016 calling for it to be considered as part of a review of parliamentary rules.
Sir Lindsay, who was elected speaker in November, said he did not want to “dictate” policy on the issue, but would not be bothered if it happened.
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Asked at a Westminster lunch whether he would allow feeding to take place in the Commons chamber and committee rooms, he replied: “My view is, it is up to the woman.
“I think it would be wrong for me as a man to dictate on that policy.
“If it happens, it happens. I wouldn’t be upset by it.”
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4/50 27 January 2020
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Getty
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7/50 24 January 2020
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Joe Root celebrates with his England team mates after taking the wicket of Rassie van der Dussen during day four of the third Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth. He took a career-best four wickets during the day’s play, which saw the home side follow on in their second innings. They trail England by 188 runs going into day five
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21/50 10 January 2020
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24/50 7 January 2020
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29/50 2 January 2020
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31/50 31 December 2019
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32/50 30 December 2019
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33/50 29 December 2019
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34/50 28 December 2019
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35/50 27 December 2019
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36/50 26 December 2019
Participants in the Old Surrey and West Kent Boxing Day Hunt in Chiddingstone. Hunting with horses and hounds is a Boxing Day tradition. Since the fox hunting ban in 2004, modified hunts take place using scented trails for the animals to follow
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37/50 25 December 2019
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38/50 24 December 2019
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39/50 23 December 2019
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41/50 21 December 2019
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48/50 14 December 2019
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50/50 12 December 2019
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1/50 30 January 2020
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2/50 29 January 2020
British MEP’s and their assistants along with members of the political group Socialist and Democrats at a ceremony prior to the vote on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU at the European Parliament in Brussels
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4/50 27 January 2020
England bowler Mark Wood is lifted aloft by Joe Root after taking the final wicket of South Africa to win the match and series during day four of the Fourth Test at Wanderers in Johannesburg
Getty
5/50 26 January 2020
Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in central London, which marks the Year of the Rat
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6/50 25 January 2020
A couple walks along the Basingstoke canal near to Dogmersfield in Hampshire
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7/50 24 January 2020
Boris Johnson gestures as he watches a performance during celebrations for Chinese Lunar New Year at Downing Street in London
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10/50 21 January 2020
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12/50 19 January 2020
Joe Root celebrates with his England team mates after taking the wicket of Rassie van der Dussen during day four of the third Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth. He took a career-best four wickets during the day’s play, which saw the home side follow on in their second innings. They trail England by 188 runs going into day five
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13/50 18 January 2020
Drag queens pose on the pink carpet as they participate in the “Queen’s Walk” during RuPaul’s DragCon UK at Kensington Olympia
AFP via Getty
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15/50 16 January 2020
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16/50 15 January 2020
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17/50 14 January 2020
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PA
18/50 13 January 2020
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AFP via Getty
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28/50 3 January 2020
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29/50 2 January 2020
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31/50 31 December 2019
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32/50 30 December 2019
Deer graze in the morning mist as cyclists ride by in Richmond Park, London
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33/50 29 December 2019
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34/50 28 December 2019
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Getty Images for Harlequins
35/50 27 December 2019
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PA
36/50 26 December 2019
Participants in the Old Surrey and West Kent Boxing Day Hunt in Chiddingstone. Hunting with horses and hounds is a Boxing Day tradition. Since the fox hunting ban in 2004, modified hunts take place using scented trails for the animals to follow
EPA
37/50 25 December 2019
Swimmers of the Serpentine Swimming Club take part in the Peter Pan Cup race, which is held every Christmas Day at the Serpentine, in central London
PA
38/50 24 December 2019
Shoppers bid for cuts of meat during a Christmas Eve auction in Smithfield market in London
EPA
39/50 23 December 2019
Reggie the dog is rescued with a boat from flooding at the Little Venice Country Park and Marina in Maidstone
AFP via Getty
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People gather at Stonehenge in Wiltshire to mark the winter solstice, and to witness the sunrise after the longest night of the year
PA
41/50 21 December 2019
Southampton’s Jack Stephens scores their second goal against Aston Villa
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Queen Elizabeth II and her son Prince Charles walk behind the Imperial State Crown as they proccess through the Royal Gallery, before the Queen’s Speech, during the State Opening of Parliament
AFP via Getty
44/50 18 December 2019
Luke Jerram’s art installation ‘Gaia’, a replica of planet earth created using detailed Nasa imagery of the Earth’s surface, hangs on display at the Eden Project in St Austell, Cornwall
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45/50 17 December 2019
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46/50 16 December 2019
Snowy conditions near Deepdale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park as snow hits parts of the UK
PA
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Oisin Carson, 5, picks a Christmas tree at Wicklow Way Christmas tree farm in Roundwood
PA
48/50 14 December 2019
First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, takes a selfie as she joins the SNPs newly elected MPs for a group photo outside the V&A Museum in Dundee, Scotland
Getty Images
49/50 13 December 2019
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EPA
50/50 12 December 2019
A dog outside a polling station during the general election in Northumberland
Reuters
Former speaker Betty Boothroyd ruled in 2000 that breastfeeding could not take place in the chamber of the Commons or committee rooms, after Swindon MP Julia Drown requested clarification on whether she could feed during lengthy sittings of the standing committee of which she was a member.
Baroness Boothroyd told the MP that neither breastfeeding nor bottle-feeding was permitted, explaining: “I do not believe that the feeding of babies in either the chamber or committee is conducive to the efficient conduct of public business.
“Nor do I think that the necessary calm environment in which to feed babies can be provided in such circumstances.”
Her successor Michael Martin later suggested a compromise option of providing a feeding room near to where committee sessions take place.
But female MPs did not drop the issue, and a series of motions were tabled demanding relaxation of the rules, while the Commons Administration Committee recommended allowing breastfeeding “wherever it is appropriate in the Palace of Westminster”.
A report commissioned by Sir Lindsay’s predecessor John Bercow recommended in 2016 that mothers should be allowed to bring babies into the chamber and voting lobbies.
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Former Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson was the first woman to take advantage of the modernising move, bringing her son Gabriel into the Commons as she attended a debate on proxy votes for MPs on maternity leave.
The 11-week-old slept in a sling being worn by his mother throughout his brief history-making appearance.
A House of Commons spokesperson said: “We recognise that suitable facilities are vitally important for breastfeeding mothers, which is why the House of Commons provides a number of private spaces across the estate. There is currently no formal policy around breastfeeding in the chamber. However any requests from members would be considered with sensitivity.”
