EAST Lancashire Tory MP Nigel Evans has condemned the Government's "incompetent" handling of business which led to the cancellation of Prime Minister's Questions on Tony Blair's 1,000th day in office.

The Conservatives were demanding two extra day's debate on the Disqualifications Bill which would allow members of the Irish Parliament in Dublin to sit in the House of Commons.

They took the sitting through Tuesday night and because the Government was not prepared to concede it was still running when the Commons should have started Wednesday's timetable, all the business including Prime Minister's Questions was scrapped.

Opposition Leader William Hague accused Mr Blair of "running scared" but he hit back by accusing the Tories of playing "political football" with the Ulster peace process.

Today Ribble Valley MP and vice-Chairman of the Tory Party Mr Evans said:"The Government with a majority of 179 has total control of its own business. They should have stopped the Disqualifications BIll from going into the night.

"Time could easily have been found to discuss this important piece of legislation.

"It was the Government's business managers who decided that the committee stages of the Bill should continue and it is they who are responsible for the loss of the days proceedings, including the Prime Minister's Question Time."

He said the anniversary of Blair's 1,000th day was a black day "for those who work in the National Health Service or who are in need of operations, for pensioners who have had their funds raided, for students who now pay fees and have lost their grants, for motorists who pay for the most expensive petrol in Europe and the British public generally who have seen their constitution savaged and wrecked."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.