George Galloway sworn in as Rochdale MP after byelection victory

George Galloway has been sworn in as the MP for Rochdale as parliament returned for the first time since the Workers party leader’s byelection win last week.

He was accompanied by the father of the House of Commons Peter Bottomley, and the Alba party MP, Neale Hanvey .

The former Labour MP met the speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, after arriving earlier in the morning at Westminster.

Galloway, regarded by some to be one of the most divisive politicians in Britain, won almost 40% of the vote in last Thursday’s vote after waging a campaign centred on the conflict in Gaza.

“I’ve always loved the building – the people in it not quite so much,” he told reporters on arrival at parliament on Monday morning.

More details soon …