Closing UK parliament’s bars could put MPs at risk, says Commons leader

The Commons leader, Lucy Powell, said MPs and their aides would be ‘less well protected’ if forced to drink outside the parliamentary estate. Photograph: Sean Smith/The Guardian

Closing all bars on the parliamentary estate could lead to security risks for MPs, the leader of the House of Commons has said.

The famous Strangers’ Bar in the Palace of Westminster has been temporarily closed while police investigate an alleged spiking incident. It is understood to have taken place on 7 January at about 6.30pm.