Saturday, June 13, 2009
Field Teaches Bercow a Lesson
Frank Field has announced on his blog that he is now unlikely to stand for the Speakership because he is unable to command enough support from within his own party, and that the new Speaker requires support from right across the House. I wonder if John Bercow will display such self knowledge and self sacrifice.
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33 comments:
Field is a class act: sincere, independent and in-touch. One of a dying breed. Which is why, like those before him like the late Gwyneth Dunwoody, he has no chance of becoming Speaker.
Our MPs want "change" and "reform" with the new Speaker - but only within the context of their current partisan comfort zones. This whole exercise of the new Speaker is going to be a rehash of typical Westminster-style politics all over again.
You must be joking, self preservation is the name of the game in the Commons today. Look after number 1! Because they only ever live off the taxpayer. Very few of them could ever hold down a revenue earning job. They are quite happy to steal the money off people who really EARN it.
Strange isn't it, so many Conservatives trust Frank Field - even though he is Labour - because they believe he will do a good job. And heaven knows that is needed.
Labour meanwhile will also vote for a member of the opposition; not because he is trustworthy, or because he will restore the public's confidence, but because he is a devious, two faced, chancer who will cause division - just like so many of them.
I do hope the Tories are clever with the way they play this and win the moral high ground.
Thats Frank Field for you.
Honest and far to good for the other MPs that why his party do not want him. He makes them look even worse if thats possible.
His wife won't let him.
Just heard Frank Field on Any Questions... if any single man ought to be PM, it's him....
why can't we have a cabinet of sanity, made up of:
Frank Field
Vince Cable
Ken Clarke
and whomsoever they choose to appoint to sort out the execrable mess made by the New Labour sledgehammers....?
The odds are better for Gordo and Mandy to start telling the truth.
He was the only decent choice from that side of the house too.
I much prefer Richard Shepherd - hopefully this move by Field will push him up the rankings.
I'm afraid you will get Bercow and you all know why.
The speaker should be elected from each Parliaments' intake and should never stand as the speaker. This is not democratic.Get rid of it now.
People getting carried away saying frank field should be PM.
Bercow will be speaker - because Labour MPs will do anything to derail the Tories.
If they are prepared to lie openly now, then picking the Berk shouldn't pose any problems.
unfortunately for you and others it is time for a tory to be speaker.
When/if bercow does become speaker it may serve as a reminder not to play politics with the speakership.
The cons and liberals did this with speaker martin and forced him out now you moan and whine because labour are doing the same.
Golden balls - I think you have it backwards. It was not the Libs and Tories that put Michael Martin in place, it was Labour.
Besides, many people - both inside and outside parliament - were convinced that Martin did a dreadful job, showed partisan leanings and was not exactly a credit to the office of Speaker.
If the Comrades have ensured that Frank Field does not stand then they are even bigger fools than I imagined. As for Bercow, he needs to realise that different standards will apply to him if he is Speaker and he needs to ensure that Labour stop abusing the House. Making Gordon answer questions instead of asking them would be a good start.
What I expect to happen is that the Comrades will select a dyed-in-wool leftie who will do as they are told by Gordon and we will be back were we are right now. It will be a mischeveous parting gift from all the lefties who are about to become unemployed.
If Parliament is supposed to be the Vox Populi why do we need a Speaker?
I think Frank Field would be an excellent choice - I hope he gets the post.
"I wonder if John Bercow will display such self knowledge and self sacrifice."
Not on current form, no.
The frankenfurter is far too good of a man to be an mp.
He puts all the bloody rest to shame, other than maybe Vince cable.
How did Bercow end up in such a safe seat? He has a majority of over 18,000!
He flipped his homes and avoided paying income tax so why doesn't Cameron set upon him to prevent him winning the Speakership?
It seems rather perverse that the new Speaker should be guilty of one of the misdemeanours that contributed to Martin's downfall.
I once met Frank Field when I was going around Birkenhead Market, he commands respect and is a genuine guy. I know alot of people dont like him - but he's honest and in-touch with the local community.
Bercow has always struck me as being an unprincipled opportunist.
So I am afraid the answer to your question has to be "no" ...
Iain said
"I wonder if John Bercow will display such self knowledge and self sacrifice."
Snowballs and hell come to mind!
Bercow needs a seat in the Commons to be speaker. An Independent standing against him with every fair minded person within reach of the constituency out campaigning would spoil his day.
The people are not going to have him foisted on them, politics is changing.... the Labour party will be the last to realise
Macha Maguire does have a point.
I truly was driven to despair by Philip hammond, on Any Questions R4. On the question of 10% cuts he was so, so terrible.
Why he cannot just say. "Of course there will have to be cuts in public expenditure" THEN "On Brown's own figures it will be 10%" THEN "We hope it will be less, it could be more, BUT we need to see the books" NO MORE!!
But for goodness sake speak PLAIN ENGLISH and be seen as honest NOT avoiding the question!
__________________________
Cameron should approach Clegg and offer the Liberal Democrats top places in any new Government after the election. IF Field is defeated ennoble him and get him in the cabinet.
The time is here for a fresh approach, away from bah hoo politics.
lets start afresh!
I agree totally about Philip Hammond. Labour are on the ropes about deceiving (could use a stronger word) on this issue but if Tories persist in doing this they are going to get tarred with the same brush.
Daily Mail - Peter Osbourne column has come out & 'called' Gordon Brown for lying. See bottom element of this article.
This has to be the election strategy for Tories - including today of course the Euro 'truth' from Mendelsohn. The public hate this guy as much as they hate Brown.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-1192728/Most-candidates-hands-till--grubby-race-Speaker-reveals-MPs-learnt-nothing.htm
Bercow doesn't have an ounce of Field's integrity.
If I were in Bercow's local party, I'd do all I could to get the slimy little creep deselected.
Haddock has it right! It appears that anyone who knows him would be prepared to back an Ind. candidate assuming Buckingham are daft enough to select him next time.Such an Ind. would not lack for workers or money.Anyone got a white suit?
PS-if he ever got into the chair we all know we'd end up with the "John and Jules" show.Now wouldn't the backbenchers just love that?
I don't see why it's such a mad idea to want Frank Field as PM... did you hear him - or have you ever heard him speak?
He's emotionally intelligent as well as having good mental acuity
He has a solid grasp of the issues and clear ideas of how to solve them
and
He has total integrity - I believe he says what he thinks and he means what he says, which puts him head and shoulders above anyone currently in either the cabinet or the shadow cabinet.
and, as a clincher, 2 minutes of him talking on AQ made more sense than anything I've heard from GB in the past 12 years.
I'd vote Labour tomorrow if he led the party, but they'll never have him because he shows the rest of them up for the spineless cretins that they are.
@Hawkeye
But the tories and liberals forced him to go
it was a handful of the usual labour suspects hoey is but one. Nick clegg leader of the liberals called for him to go and the motion was put forward by a conservative. If a vote had been taken speaker martin would have won but he would have been damaged.
you think that speaker martin was partisan i have a longer memory of parliment and speaker weratherall wasn't exactly neutral either.
You say the speaker should force the pm or minister to answer questions. How would that exactly work. Just because the pm doesn't answer it in the way that clegg or cameron wants doesn't mean he's not answering the question. Thatcher did exactly the same as did major.
The people watching parliment will see GB not answering the question. Let them decide his fate its not for the speaker to decide.
Field is one of very few MPs on any side of the house who comes across as both highly intelligent and a man of genuine principle.
If Labour had any sense, Frank would be given a major ministry to sort out, or better yet be their leader.
The fact that his own party don't even like him much says nothing to his detriment and everything to theirs.
This is starting to sound like a LibDem or New Labour blog.
Field is a decent and studious bloke.
1) What has he ever run ?
2) Where is the evidence that he has the political expertise and leadership qualities to head a government ?
Same, in spades, for Vince Cable.
You guys should stick to the X-factor.
@ Dimoto
I know you may be struggling with this but:
"1) What has he ever run ?"
Since when has that been a prerequsite for election to the post of Speaker?
"2) Where is the evidence that he has the political expertise and leadership qualities to head a government ?"
Er, the Speaker is constitutionally not allowed to "head a government".
Would you like to take a second stab at it? After all they sometimes allow that on X-Factor - I'm told.
I thought Cable was dreadful on Marr's show this morning.
Absolutely crap.
Whats this £27000 he got all tied up in knots about?
Apart from the fact that John Bercow acted as an adviser on special education (I think) and has a wife who is not Tory (I believe) - what else has he done to incur the wrath of so many people? As a constituent of his - he seems to be reasonably good local MP who votes with his party.
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