UK lawmakers electing a new speaker after incumbent was ousted amid expenses scandal

UK lawmakers to elect speaker in secret ballot

LONDON — Ten British lawmakers were vying Monday to become the new speaker of the House of Commons, after the incumbent was ousted amid a scandal over lawmakers’ excessive expense claims.

Each of the candidates has promised sweeping reforms aimed at restoring public trust in the country’s tainted politics.

The previous speaker, Scottish lawmaker Michael Martin, was the first presiding officer forced out in more than 300 years. He was blamed for failing to push through reforms to the expense system, and had made repeated attempts to block publication of expenses before being overruled by Britain’s courts.

Documents leaked to a newspaper last month revealed that lawmakers had billed the public for items including pornographic movies, horse manure and repairs to tennis courts.

Ordinary Britons suffering amid a deep recession were outraged by the details, which also demonstrated how some legislators charged vast sums for home improvements or claimed for bogus home loan payments.

On Monday, lawmakers were electing a new speaker by secret ballot for the first time. Previously, legislators voted openly, which allowed political parties to try to influence the outcome.

Bookmakers said favorites included former Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett and two others: opposition figure John Bercow and George Young, a baronet.

Also seeking the post were Sikh lawmaker Parmjit Dhanda and Ann Widdecombe, a Conservative legislator known for her lighthearted appearances on reality television shows.

The ten candidates were largely untainted by the expenses scandal, though Beckett faced criticism for claiming almost 11,000 pounds ($18,000) in gardening costs, and Bercow was revealed to have charged taxpayers for help completing his tax returns.

The contenders each made their pitch during a packed meeting of the House of Commons before the chamber’s 646 lawmakers began voting.

“We have recapitalized the banks, we now need to recapitalize the House of Commons. We have left behind the age of deference, we need to arrive at the age of earned respect,” Young told lawmakers in his address.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown will not vote, his office said, following a convention that the British leader does not take part.

The speaker must be an elected legislator for a political party, but once in office is supposed to be impartial and independent of government — unlike in the U.S., where the speaker of the House of Representatives is often a partisan advocate for the majority party.

The British speaker, who has the use of a luxurious apartment inside Parliament, decides which lawmakers are called on to speak, can suspend those who break rules and represents the chamber in discussions with Queen Elizabeth II and the House of Lords.

Tasks include maintaining decorum — sometimes shouting “Order! Order!” — from a raised wooden chair that used to be used as a toilet, ensuring lengthy debates could continue without breaks.

The winning candidate traditionally feigns a reluctance to take the speaker post, and is ceremonially hauled to the chair by fellow legislators.

The custom has its roots in the job’s grim history — seven previous speakers have been beheaded, one murdered and another killed in battle.