British PM rebuffs calls for election after speaker quits
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown rebuffed growing calls for an early general election yesterday after the historic resignation of the House of Commons' speaker in a row over MPs expenses.
David Cameron, leader of the main opposition Conservatives and tipped by opinion polls to be premier in roughly a year, warned that angry public demands for change would not be satisfied by Tuesday's ouster of Michael Martin.
Martin became the first speaker to be forced out since 1695 after 23 lawmakers signed a motion of no confidence over his resistance to reforms to the controversial lawmakers' expenses system.
Leaked documents showing how MPs (members of parliament) spent public money on everything from food and drink to tennis court repairs and moat cleaning have been published by the Daily Telegraph newspaper over the last two weeks.
During a rowdy Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) session, Cameron -- praised by commentators for his swift response to the crisis -- urged a snap election and told Brown he was "arrogant" and "hopelessly out of touch."
"We won't end the paralysis just by electing a new speaker or even setting new rules," he said. "We've got to give the public their voice and the country a chance of a fresh start."
Brown did not respond directly to election calls but stressed his credentials to lead Britain through its worst recession since World War II.
"Our duty is not only to change the system of the House of Commons," the premier said. "Our duty also is to take this country through the difficulties of the recession."
Brown again said sorry for the scandal during a round of television interviews Wednesday, the day after he tried to move forward by announcing a new wave of proposals to overhaul the system.
"I take responsibility. On this programme, I apologise to the people of this country for what happened," he said on ITV television. "I am angry and I am appalled."
He had rejected calls for an early election Tuesday, saying the problem would not be solved "by a few people changing the name plates... of the constituency they represent." Brown has to call a national poll by mid-2010.
After PMQs, lawmakers went on to debate measures announced Tuesday night by Martin following his resignation which are designed to shake up the old system.
These include a 1,250 pound (1,420 euro, 1,940 dollar) cap per month on what they can claim for rent and mortgage interest payments and a ban on claims for furniture in second homes and publishing expense claims online every quarter.
Brown has also proposed bringing in an independent regulator to control parliamentary pay and allowances and says Labour lawmakers who have broken the rules will not be allowed to stand at the next election.
"Westminster cannot operate like some gentlemen's club where members make up the rules and operate them among themselves," Brown said Tuesday.
The British press yesterday agreed that Martin's departure had been necessary but that Brown, Cameron and other politicians must still do more to banish the whiff of scandal.
"(Martin's) decision to quit will not rescue the sinking ship that this soiled and discredited parliament has become. Only a general election can do that," said the Sun tabloid, Britain's biggest-selling paper.
The Daily Telegraph, meanwhile, described Martin's departure as the first stage of a "very British revolution."
Martin's resignation "reflects a collapse of public faith in the political system," it added.
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