If you’ve ever been to London you’ll have noticed that the loud bongs of Big Ben chime out across the entire metropolis to remind each and every one of us liberal elites of the passing of the time in our vast, democratic capital. Yes, the dwindling of our days is marked by the sing-song chorus of an ancient bell, and each time it thunders, we all stop, even just for a nano-second, to acknowledge Britain’s greatness.
Well, not really. You can barely even hear the bongs from across the Thames, let alone miles away, and the proper markers of time in modern London tend to include, but not be limited to: piles of Pret napkins loitering on your desk or tempestuous rain storms, late mornings due to tube delays, days spent shopping for things that yes, definitely should have just been bought online and pre-noon Uber Eats deliveries.
Alas, MPs Stephen Pound and Peter Bone, disagree. The pair, who both tried to stop the bongs being stopped, went outside Parliament today to watch Big Ben's last chimes before it stopped for four years. Mr Pound even cried.
The bell - nicknamed Big Ben - is housed in Elizabeth Tower, and is to cease its bongs for four years because of a major, taxpayer-funded refurbishment to the Houses of Parliament. Though tourists, convinced of Big Ben’s eternal relevance in the UK’s day-to-day life, might flock to hear its dulcet quarter-hourly bongs, it was thought that labourers working right next to the tower deserve, for their own health and safety, to not have the big bell chiming out over them as they set to work preserving its casing.
But that hasn’t stopped MPs getting upset about it.
Mr Pound, the Labour MP for Ealing North, who had organised the gathering, had earlier told the Press Association: ‘We’re going to be gathering outside the members’ entrance, gazing up at this noble glorious edifice, listening to the sounds rolling across Westminster, summoning true democrats to the Palace of Westminster.
We’ll be stood down there with heads bowed but hope in our hearts.’
He was joined by Peter Bone, the MP for Wellingborough, who was asked by Sky News whether he had also attended Grenfell Tower following the tragic fire that killed scores of people in state-provided accommodation. You can watch that exchange here:
You might also be interested in:
Memes: Could They Change The Outcome Of The General Election?
Follow Sophie on Twitter @sophwilkinson
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.