Speaker contest ends up as farcical game of knockout

The election of the 187th Speaker of the House of Commons descended into farce yesterday, with MPs complaining the vote was reminiscent of Communist eastern Europe.

The election of the 187th Speaker of the House of Commons descended into farce yesterday, with MPs complaining the vote was reminiscent of Communist eastern Europe.

Sir Edward Heath, the father of the House, sparked protests from MPs from all parties when he rejected calls for a "fair and open" ballot to find the successor to Betty Boothroyd. Amid chaotic scenes in a packed chamber, Sir Edward opted instead to allow a marathon series of "knock-out" votes lasting six and half hours as MPs voted on each of the 12 candidates for the post.

However, Michael Martin, Labour MP for Glasgow Springburn and a Deputy Speaker, looked bound to become the first Catholic Speaker since the Reformation.

Labour MPs appeared determined to defy the convention of allowing the Speakership to alternate between parties, and allies of Mr Martin, the bookies' favourite, were claiming victory before the voting ended.

Mr Martin's main rival, the Tory former cabinet minister Sir George Young, failed in his nomination as MPs voted by 317 votes to 241 against him.

Other contenders, including Alan Beith and Menzies Campbell of the Liberal Democrats and the Labour backbencher Gwyneth Dunwoody, also failed to win sufficient support.

The vote to elect the Speaker was the first item of business for MPs as they returned from their lengthy summer break and began the new session of Parliament.

The unprecedented size of the field of candidates had earlier prompted many MPs to plead with Sir Edward for a more transparent and less antiquated system of voting.

Tony Benn, MP for Chesterfield, won cheers from many colleagues when he proposed an open ballot so that all candidates could be considered simultaneously for the post.

Gordon Prentice, Labour MP for Pendle, who held unofficial hustings before the vote, said that the election "should be open, it should be transparent and people outside should be able to understand it.

"People don't want to elect a new Speaker under this discredited system, which wouldn't be out of place in eastern Europe before the wall came down."

Sir Edward said he had "considerable sympathy" with those who wanted a ballot, but warned it was not a "simple solution" and pressed ahead with the series of 12 individual votes.

Mr Martin, a former sheet metal worker who has been touted as the only "working class" candidate, promised to protect the democratic traditions of the Commons and make it more family-friendly.