MP outrage over 'bonkers' plan to silence Big Ben

A row has erupted over plans to silence parliament's cherished Great Clock, known affectionately as Big Ben, to protect workers' hearing during a four-year renovation.

"The Blitz could not silence Big Ben, but the Little Hitlers of elf'n'safety have succeeded where the Fuhrer failed," the Daily Mail's Richard Littlejohn writes.

Caling the plan "mad", Brexit Secretary David Davis said he didn't see why the clock needed to stay silent for the majority of the four-year construction project and told the estate's authorities to "just get on with it".

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Conservative MP James Gray, who sat on the administration committee approving the work, called the plan "entirely bonkers".

MPs are demanding a review of whether it's necessary to silence the chimes. They've asked officials to examine the cost and practical implications of ringing the Great Bell more often than planned. As it stands, Big Ben will cease ringing at noon BST on Monday and will chime only on special occasions – including New Year's Eve – until construction finishes in 2021.

"Silencing Big Ben is like stopping the heartbeat of our democracy," Daily Telegraph columnist Frances Wilson says.

Parliamentary officials insist that Big Ben's bong would put the hearing of workers at "serious risk". The TUC public sectors union said silencing the chimes was "common sense".

If the TUC prevails, it will be the longest period Big Ben has been silenced in its 157-year history.

"The government should stop dragging its feet on repairs," says Caroline Shenton, a former director of the Parliamentary Archives, writing in The Guardian. "If the buildings crumble, with them goes part of our identity – and billions in tourist income."