British Minister of Parliament Eric Joyce was arrested after a late-night brawl at a bar in the House of Commons, reports The Guardian. Joyce had already resigned from the Labour party after earlier headbutting two rivals in a previous Commons melee; he now serves as an independent.

  • http://twitter.com/incarnedine_v Dan Hibiki

     quitting after just one headbutt? Ukraine would be ungovernable after a month if that was the case there.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fadIvRtayts

  • NickPheas

    See also this report http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21790348 that holds ex-soldiers (like Joyce) are much more likely to engage in assaults.

    • Wreckrob8

      Much? Overall there is a 2% increase in the incidence of violent criminal behaviour compared with the general population.

      Among ex-servicemen under the age of thirty there is a significant increase over the general population – c20% against c6%.

      For both violent and non-violent offences there is a reduced risk of criminal behaviour amongst ex-servicemen.

      Joyce is just a thug who should know better and be better able to control himself.

      • NickPheas

        Much higher in young ex-soldiers then. Which admittedly, Joyce is not.

        Unless one does believe you’re only as old as the woman you feel, in which case, by some accounts Joyce is extremely young indeed.

  • http://www.youtube.com/user/Freethinkersanon Christopher

    Drunk politician brawling and getting arrested? No big deal.

    There’s a bar inside the House of Commons? Never before in my life have I given as much thought to running for office as I am after learning that fact. And I’m not even British. At least not yet.

    • Wreckrob8

      A bar? You will find a choice of bars in the Palace of Westminster. They have never been subjected to the licensing restrictions necessary to keep the hoi polloi in their place. Time to end happy hour, I think.

    • Navin_Johnson

       Can’t remember if it was posted on Boing Boing but I seem to remember a kerfuffle over this bar serving some kind of beer that had a sexist kind of cheesecakey tap handle which grated some of the women politicians and patrons.

      • Narmitaj

         That beer is Top Totty. Total alcohol consumption in outlets in the House is over $500K p.a., but that includes all 13,000 pass-holders plus visiting members of the public, not just MPs.

        Beer prices in Commons bars seem to be about 25% lower than prices in surrounding pubs.

      • theophrastvs

        possibly this refers to the great Top Totty scandal?  (at the time i expected it to be “racier” than that; but some of us were raised on Benny Hill)

  • grahamix

    *Member* of Parliament. He’s not, and never has been, a Minister, although he did serve as a Parliamentary Private Secretary in 2003.

    • peregrinus

      He does seem to be a bit of a member.

  • http://www.disoriented.net/ angusm

    “Our precious model of democracy
    It’s the House of Commons brawl.”
    ["Commons Brawl", Jethro Tull]

  • Glen Able

    Particularly since the MP expenses fraud cases of the last few years, it’s clear that our UK politicians have a rate of criminal convictions significantly higher than the average population.  I think it’s time to bring in some tough but fair measures against this section of society, such as increased surveillance and close examination of personal finances.

    I have no doubt that the majority of our politicians are decent and hard-working folk with nothing to fear from these measures, and they will all be happy to accept this tiny loss of privacy for the good of society.

    • Beanolini

      close examination of personal finances.

      Did you know there’s now an online interface to examine the expenses claims of your (or anyone else’s) MP? In the main, they’re dull. Really, really dull.

    • Wreckrob8

      The criminals were caught which proves the system works. Clearly self-regulation for everybody in all areas is the way to go, in working practices and financial affairs, for airline pilots and surgeons, the police and car mechanics, dentists, lawyers and shop assistants.

  • chgoliz

    “he now serves as an independent”

    I was hoping that sentence would end “he now serves time”.  Silly me.

  • noah django

    today I learned that there are multiple bars in the buildings housing at least one of the governing bodies of the UK.

    I cannot determine if this helps or hinders the political process, but I raise my glass to you, Britons.