Working-Class Boy Made Good ?

The future of Commons Speaker Michael Martin seems to be in the balance right now.

I can't quite work out what to make of all this. I've no doubt that Martin has made a pretty appalling speaker. His decision that he should head heading a "root and branch" parliamentary inquiry into all aspects of MPs' expenses in the wake of the Derek Conway affair looks no more than a woeful attempt to keep seedy details in the family. He's also faced accusations of bias, not least of all having told David Cameron off for asking Tony Blair about his successor. And if has broken the rules over the use of airmiles for his family or claims of allowances then he's got to go.

On the other hand I can't help feeling that some people have been out to get this guy from the very start. He was labelled "Gorbals Mick" early on in his time as Speaker, which suggests that to some people where you come from is as important as what you do. I'm certain that to some, it's Martin's working-class origins that are the problem and that because of them he can do no right in some eyes. That's a sorry state of affairs but it reflects one of the reasons that I cannot support the Conservative Party any more; some people in that party talk a good game about encouraging a truly open society, but when faced with the results of someone who's come up through the ranks they react with petty vindictiveness.

Quite apart from anything else, the Speaker's got what has to be one of the worst jobs in the country; keeping MPs in order.