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David Jamieson: My time spent cleaning up dog vomit in the House of Commons

As Gavin Williamson becomes Theresa May's chief whip, West Midlands PCC David Jamieson recalls his own experiences in the office under Tony Blair.

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Dragging drunk MPs out of the bar, cleaning up Cabinet member's guide dog's vomit off the Commons floor while Parliament is in session and playing a key role in steering through Government policy.

It's all part and parcel of the whip's life, according to David Jamieson. These days the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner spends his time battling to ensure the region's police force is efficient and effective.

But before the turn of the century the then-Labour MP took on what is arguably one of the most exciting – and mysterious – jobs in politics.

Mr Jamieson was called up to the whips' office in 1997, firstly to serve under Chief Whip Nick Brown, and later under Ann Taylor.

It was a heady time for Labour. Under Tony Blair the party had stormed to victory in that year's general election, winning a whopping 418 seats which gave the party a 10.2 per cent swing from the Tories.

It meant Labour had dozens of new MPs, many of whom, according to Mr Jamieson, had not expected to win their seats.

"So many of them were new I was faced with a big challenge," said Mr Jamieson, who was responsible for more than 30 MPs across the south of England. "We had people who had stood to help their party but had never expected to actually end up in Parliament. As a result they weren't prepared for political life. I had to explain to them how to join a committee, how to employ staff and raise a question in the House, the basics really.

David Jamieson, back row, third from left, with the rest of the whip's office under Prime Minister Tony Blair on November 18, 1997

"I found out very quickly it is an endless job," he recalled. "I would spend hours wandering around Westminster speaking to people. There was always more to do."

One of his regular routes would take him into the infamous Annie's Bar, the now-closed down watering hole where journalists and politicians would meet to chew the fat.

"Sadly it was the place where people who had lost control of their drinking habits would congregate," he said. "I would walk in to the sight of MPs taking a whiskey and chaser at 11am. On one hand I would be worried about their health, but it was my job to make sure they didn't say anything stupid that would end up in the press.

"There were one or two over the years I had to drag out of there to get them into Prime Minister's Questions. Some of them would have happily stayed in the bar and watched it on the television."

The mechanics of the whip's role are shrouded in mystery. They rarely speak out while in post, operating in the shadows as key drivers in pushing party policy.

In essence, a whip is required to organise and discipline MPs, making sure they turn up to ballots and vote with the party. South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson, appointed Chief Whip by Theresa May, plays the key role in disseminating information from Number 10.

"It is a position that requires a firm hand, but you also have to know how to work with people as individuals," Mr Jamieson said.

"You have to know everything that is going on and be ready to spread the message.

"If one of ours was being disloyal and speaking out against the party, I would draw people away from them.

"It might take a whisper in the ears of other MPs in the lobby, telling them to steer clear of a certain person. We would make it so when a disloyal MP spoke in the Commons they would be surrounded by empty seats. We had to get the message across any way we could."

But he admits the tactic didn't always work. "There were some MPs who you just couldn't get through to," he says. On one occasion Jamie Cann, the now deceased MP for Ipswich, used a debate on the legal age of consent to launch a shocking verbal attack on homosexuality. "As he spoke the Speaker was looking at me in a state of disbelief," Mr Jamieson said. "The things he was saying...it was about as low as it gets. Sadly there was no controlling him. I didn't even bother talking to him about it. He was a lost cause."

But it would be another unsavoury incident that would come to define Mr Jamieson's time in the whip's office.

As then-Education Secretary David Blunkett took questions from his Tory opposite number David Willetts in the Commons, his guide dog was violently sick under the table at his feet.

Mr Blunkett was completely oblivious to what had happened, as was the majority of the House, although Mr Jamieson had seen the incident from below the Speaker's chair.

"Some people in the public gallery had noticed and were pointing at it," recalled Mr Jamieson. "The Deputy Speaker suggested we adjourn the House to clean up, but instead I went and got some cleaning materials."

When he returned, he says he crept under the bench and cleaned up the mess. "Poor old David Willetts was blathering on but by that stage no one was listening," Mr Jamieson said.

"They were all watching me under the bench."

A tricky job completed without too much of a fanfare, or so he thought. "When I got back to my office my assistant said the phone had not stopped ringing with people asking about the incident," he said. "Then I got told that a German television crew was waiting to interview me about it. It was mayhem."

And it didn't end there. A short time later he was on a Parliamentary trip to the USA when he and other dignitaries were welcomed by long-time West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd.

Glaring down at him from the podium, Mr Byrd said: "Jamieson...aren't you the guy who cleaned up the dog puke?"

Now 69, Mr Jamieson says he has fond memories of Mr Blair's leadership. "We would take our instructions from the Chief Whip, but I would sometimes speak with Blair in the lobby," he says.

"He had a great sense of humour and was very funny. Gordon Brown was less obliging."

He cites numerous policy success stories, including big victories on reducing staff shortages in the NHS and reducing class sizes in schools.

"Knowing that I played a part in steering those policies through the House makes all the hard work worthwhile," he added.

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