John Bercow, a one-time Conservative rightwinger, last night won the first secret ballot in parliament's 700-year history to become the new Speaker of the Commons, pledging to revitalise parliament and end the relentless erosion of its strength.
After leading the field through every round, he defeated his more establishment oriented Tory rival, Sir George Young, on the third ballot by 322 votes to 271. The hotly tipped former Labour foreign secretary Margaret Beckett failed to poll as well as expected, and dropped out after the second round of voting.
Bercow's election was greeted by warm applause from the Labour side, and notably more sullen support from the Tories. Though he was elected as Tory MP for Buckingham in 1997, he has long been regarded as a turncoat. The Conservatives are frustrated that Labour MPs had used what is likely to be a brief remaining period of control of the Commons to elect a Speaker who they believe long ago abandoned their values, and was in effect a Labour candidate.
Bercow told MPs he was the "clean break" candidate able to draw a line under the expenses scandal that forced his predecessor, Michael Martin, out of office. "I want to implement an agenda for reform, for renewal, for revitalisation and for the reassertion of the core values of this great institution in the context of the 21st century," he said in his appeal for votes.
"That this election is being held at this moment testifies to the turmoil engulfing this place and to the crisis of confidence in parliamentarians themselves. Until we can move the debate on from sleaze and second homes to the future of this house, we shall remain in deep trouble."
After his election MPs laughed as he told them he would fulfil the pledge to "immediately and permanently cast aside all of his or her previous political views".
Bercow could find only one Tory nominee on the backbenches, Charles Walker. But his campaign manager, Martin Salter, dismissed claims that he had the backing of only three Tory MPs.
David Cameron, in congratulating him on his election, made a barbed reference to Bercow's changed views, and the Speaker will have to work hard to prove his independence, discretion and willingness to listen as well as lead. "We share a collective responsibility for what went wrong, we share a collective responsibility for putting it right," Cameron said.
The role of Speaker at one level is confined to chairing debates in the Commons, but in the current crisis caused by the expenses row, there is a consensus that the position is more public and will require driving a reform agenda that sees the executive brought under control.
Bercow said that there must be a cross-party business committee that really runs parliament, rather than simply leaving the agenda to the government. He also promised that "urgent questions must be more readily granted; scrutiny of budgets and legislation, both domestic and European, must be enhanced and, once and for all, ministers must be obliged to make key policy statements in the Commons".
He will have to prove he is genuinely a clean break candidate, since he has agreed in recent days to pay back more than £6,000 in previous expenses claims, including nearly £1,000 claimed for accountant advice. He is also reported to have profited from redesignating the status of his second home and not paying capital gains tax.
Bercow is the first of 157 Speakers to be Jewish and, at 46, the youngest for 170 years. He follows two Labour Speakers and is the first Tory to be elected to the role since Bernard Weatherill in 1983.
He said he would serve just nine years – in effect two full parliamentary terms.
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, urged Bercow to use his "mandate for change" to "reinvent" the role of Speaker. To Tory jeers, Gordon Brown told MPs : "We have shown today we can cross party divisions in our choice of Speaker." Brown went on: "Undoubtedly the road ahead will not be easy but with your leadership and integrity, this house has begun the path to renewal."
source: guardian.co.
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