 The post of a Whip normally required silence in the chamber of the House of Commons, but in February 1976 Dormand was involved in a difficult situation which required him to give an explanation.The Conservative opposition had called a vote censuring the Secretary of State for Industry Eric Varley by reducing his salary to £1,000.Dormand was appointed as one of the tellers to count the vote, but both he and his Conservative opposite number miscounted and lost the true count.