business

THE ten-day- elderly furore surrounding MPs exploitation of the lax parliamentary system of expenses and allowances claimed its biggest scalp on Tuesday whitethorn 19th. In a terse statement, Michael Martin announced that he would step down as speaker unit of the House of Commons on June 21st. He had interpreted this decision, he said, in order to preserve the unity of the House, which had been riven in recent days over his future. It was an historic moment: no speaker has been ejected (for Mr Martins resignation is anything but voluntary) since 1695.

The prime minister, for his part, past promised sweeping changes, in a press conference called trey hours after the speakers statement. No longer would fantan regulate itself like a gentlemens club, Gordon Brown said. Expenses and allowances would be determined and policed by an independent body. All parties had agreed to frequent this approach in principle. No Labour MP who had modest the rules would be allowed to stand for re-election, Mr Brown maintained.

Mr Martin and Mr Brown are old political allies. Mr Brown says that he has been beavering away at parliamentary reform for some time.



Yet Mr Martin, it is clear, was exceedingly slow to pick up the ferocity of public outrage at the parliamentary nest-feathering that has been capable in measured doses by the Telegraph, a daily newspaper, since May 8th. Last week, with the House gripped by details of tennis courts maintained, bathplugs claimed for and houses do up and sold for profit, all at the taxpayers expense, the speaker showed more ire towards MPs who apparently condoned the newspapers acquisition and publication of leaked information than he did towards the MPs hangdog by the revelations themselves. An excruciating apology in the Commons on May 18th for this bizarre focus, after which the speaker was publicly excoriated and urged to resign by fellow MPs (including some on the Labour benches he himself once sat on), only hastened his departure. So did the rumoured...If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Ordercustompaper.com



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