http://www.heraldscotland.com/new-firm-to-loo..."The 'ultimate protest' an MP can make
By convention, the mace symbolises the authority of Parliament and the Commons cannot sit without it in position.
Removing the mace is considered the ultimate protest for an MP in the Commons.
Michael Heseltine earned his Tarzan nickname for swinging it above his head in 1976 as Labour MPs insisted on singing the Red Flag during the passage of an aircraft and shipbuilding bill.
Ron Brown, the former Labour MP for Leith, grabbed the mace and threw it to the floor in protest over the poll tax in 1988 and was ordered to pay £1500 for its repair.
In 1930, Labour MP John Beckett was ordered out of the Commons when he grabbed the mace in protest at the suspension of another member.
With the chamber in uproar yesterday Mr McDonnell was "named" by the Deputy Speaker.
Mr McDonnell attempted to apologise for his protest, but Deputy Speaker Sir Alan Haselhurst ordered him to leave "without further comment". Mr McDonnell later said he had nothing to apologise about.