A Clean Sweep

When the Speaker stands up today at 3:30, he has to deal with what might become a complete breakdown of trust in our Parliamentary system, by voters, as a result of the expenses fiasco. The question of expenses rightly angers the public, but the Speaker is now offered a unique opportunity to reform Parliament.

His statement will hopefully cover five areas:

1. He should announce zero tolerance to fraudulent claims. Those in the outside world guilty of the worst abuses that have been uncovered would face prosecution. MPs should not be exempt from the criminal law. My guess is a lot of local parties will also begin the process of deselection. Failure to do so will see incumbents challenged by anti-sleaze candidates, who will probably win their seat.

2. The Speaker needs to announce immediate measures governing all allowances while awaiting the Kelly Commission on Standards in Public Life to report. All expenses from the beginning of this financial year should go online, the moment they have been agreed by the fees office. A slim-line Additional Cost Allowance should be announced with the clearest of guidelines outlining what can be claimed - not what cannot be claimed. The Communications Allowance should be abolished, no allowances should be used for supposed "services" received from local parties, and MPs should be forbidden to allow their local parties to use their offices in the constituencies.

3. The Speaker should announce that he has requested the Kelly Commission to report by mid-July. MPs can then debate the proposals before the summer, but they need to approve them without changing a dot or comma. The Fees Office would then have the summer recess to bring in the totally new system operating from the autumn.

4. The Commons must recognise that we live in an age of party governments, and that parties are crucial for delivering responsible government. Failure to get through their election programme would result in governments not being accountable for broken election promises. As a part of a new clear contract between the government and the Commons, while accepting the need for party government, the Speaker should announce today that it is up to the House of Commons to decide how the Government gets that programme through the House. He should set out that he intends to propose new machinery for managing House of Commons business, so that the Commons itself will in future organise its own timetable to consider Government measures, as well as its own measures.

5. The House of Commons must now better represent the views of voters. This should naturally follow from the Commons gaining control over its own timetable. The Government needs to be much more relaxed about the details of their programme so that MPs, better representing their constituents, can make measures contained in government Bills are more fit for purpose. Similarly, the Commons needs to elect the Chairmen and Members of each of its own Committees by secret ballot. The Select Committee system should also be enhanced not only in a pre-legislative role on Bills. It needs to extend its works so that serious issues raised by constituents are reported upon making it easier for those issues to be translated into future reform programmes.

Comments

Frank, I suggested to you previously that you offer yourself to succeed Speaker Martin. You have a lot of public support according to what I am now reading in the media. We also need a general election no later than the beginning of September.
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Frank - will you allow your name to go forward as the next Speaker?
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What a fiasco this afternoon. Martin has got to go NOW.Frank for Speaker!
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Frank, having just read ' A Clean Sweep', I feel that the view you express in the last sentence of section 2, that is 'MPs should be forbidden to allow their local parties to use their offices in the constituencies', would make life very difficult for local labour parties to support and campaign for their MP, especially at a time when they need all the help they can get. In my opinion, local parties need to work hand in hand with their MP, as they do with their councillors because at the end of the day, the MP needs the local party and its campaigning machinery to get elected. I agree with the rest of your proposals but am not sure there is the politcal will or intelligence to push these forward. I would appreciate your response.
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Mr Field, you miss one very important point, 6, MP's tax allowances and treatment of MP's expenses will be the same as any other citizen.
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Frank, Thinking about my late Father who was a Boilermaker Welder in the shipyards ,he would not claim free dinners for us when ill or on strike saying it was him who fed us 9 kids not the state,poor Mum pawned her clothes and rings.what would he think of our greedy MPs now who used the states monies for trivial items.So pleased you are still in the Commons ,please put your name down for the Speakers job .
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Martin finally did the right thing.I agree with most of what you say, Frank except that I don't think MPs should accept the Kelly report outright, before it's published. I wouldn't purchase a microwave without knowing its specification and I wouldn't sign an agreement without viewing its conditions. To do so would be folly.Can you please tell me why you and others insist that the Kelly report should be accepted outright, in view of my comment?
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Frank, should you be so inclined I think you would make an excellent speaker of the house in whom I would have complete trust.
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Frank, your quote that local parties should be forbidden to use the office of the MP in the constituencies is spot on!The office should only be used by the MP`s staff. Campaigning times/dates can be agreed between the MP and staff, a list of which is then sent by email to the constituency campaign co-ordinator, whose role is to organise a group of activists to meet at a designated area for canvassing.Constituency parties can debate and discuss any outstanding issues at their meetings.There is not really a need for an MP to have a constituency office if the local organisation is working efficiently.There is hope for all of us if only we had MPs with your down to earth common sense.
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Dear Mr Field, will you please allow your name to be put forward as Speaker. We need someone like you, someone independent of mind, with personal integrity and a love for our Parliament.
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An enormous sense of relief that you are THERE, and hopefully there may be others (MPs) who share your qualities and convictions. I cannot possibly explain how sick at heart I am (85 year old, ex-lifelong Labour voter): I broadly agree with all of A CLEAN SWEEP and know that you are a person of principle - seemingly now a great rarity, and certainly to be supported and cherished! I think what has been - for me - the last straw in a avalanche/deluge of straws (no pun intended) was yesterday in Parliament. A Speaker, whose sins would take too long and consume too much energy for me to list - but dishonest personally (see expenses record), obstructive+++ in attitude/action re Freedom of Info, utterly inadquate to the job in the House - e.g. (disgusting display of venom to Hoey, Winnick when 'correct' procedurally questions are asked - for this alone I personally would have the 'neutral' Speaker [plainspeak Chairman of House when sitting] dismissed immediately. And now - the supreme insult to voters like me, who came to the Labour cause out of some conviction - the 'tributes' - from G. Brown upwards or downwards and - MPs clapping and cheering him when, dragged kicking and screaming[19.5](in his usual less than articulate way - SPEAKER! - some bad joke!)to resign. All this 'metal worker' hypocrisy - he is by no means unique, even in this harsh world. What about B. Boothroyd - I don't know how 'privileged' her background was. Do know about her qualities - in evidence every working day of her term as Speaker.I feel as if I personally have been trashed - am I to be lumped in with this ludicrous, insulting accusation of 'scapegoating'. Martin in his position was the top of the heap, 'responsible' for administration of Green Book and admin of Fees Office. Of course it might have helped if anyone could have been able to read and comprehend the terms of it..... My representatives in the supreme body for legisation... what an abysmal 'joke'. Doesn't anyone in the House appreciate the significance of expenses as a symptom of dishonesty, abandonment of principle. I despair, and am very very 'concerned' (understatement) about the future for decent people of all ages. G. Brown has the gall to talk about 'hard working families'.Sorry that this has been so 'wordy', but this is a tragic farce. What an enormous gift to the far, far Right (plus, of course the Tories). They couldn't have dreamed it up. Can't any of them - mealy words aside - realise how we, the voters, have been insulted.I hope you will retain your strength of mind, and that you may be the nucleus of some group which is clean and honest and have functioning consciences.
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Mr. Field, please don't be the new Speaker,we nead you to "speak" for us all.
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