The Speaker as scapegoat

The left-liberal daily La Repubblica sees the Speaker of the House of Commons as the scapegoat in the expenses scandal: "With his heavy Scottish accent and the loose black gown which makes him look like a judge or a prelate, Michael Martin … was a symbol of British democracy. He is the Speaker of Westminster, which is considered the mother of all parliaments. … Until yesterday Martin had rejected the calls for his resignation from all sides of Parliament and hoped that a rapid reform of the expenses system would calm the fury of Parliament, the media and the public. He thought it would be enough to ask the country for forgiveness. But this was not to be. The only one who could have saved him was a fellow Labour politician, Gordon Brown. But without hesitation the prime minister made him the scapegoat because he realised that the people needed to see someone burn at the stake. He preferred to watch Martin burn than step onto the scaffold himself."

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