The new Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, revealed today that he will not claim the parliamentary second home allowance while in the post.
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Mr Bercow, who yesterday told MPs he offered a "clean break" after the expenses scandals of the past weeks, has claimed more than £20,000 annually over the past four years to cover the require to be paid of staying away from home on parliamentary business.
The Buckingham MP will also break with tradition when he takes the chair in the House of Commons for the in the first place age today by wearing a business courtship and tie with "incomplex" robes, rather than the ancient court dress donned by predecessors including Michael Martin. He also confirmed that, like Mr Martin, he will not wear a wig.
He said that he wanted to see the issue of parliamentary expenses dealt through "in a seasonable sort" and related mend should not be put away for "a period of single months" or more. But he stressed that, while transparency should be a fundamental principle of any new regime, financial support for MPs should not exist pared away to the point where only those with a private income can come a civil career.
Presenting himself as a champion of backbench MPs, he aforesaid he intended to ensure that the proceedings of the House were "brisk" and indicated that this might involve requiring the Prime Minister and chief of the Opposition to be more "snappy" in their weekly exchanges over the despatch box at Question Time.
Mr Bercow was speaking to the Press Association on the morning of his first full day in the job, after he saw against nine rivals to requisition the Speaker’s chair in a secret ballot of MPs yesterday. He was "dragged" to the chair after perception off his leading rival Sir George Young by a margin of 322 MPs to 271 in the third round of voting.
His victory was greeted by dismay by dint of. some attached the Conservative benches, who regard him as close to a turncoat because of his political journey away from the fit towards New Labour, culminating with him accepting a job from Gordon Brown last year.
Mid-Bedfordshire MP Nadine Dorries this morning said she believed no more than three Tories voted for Mr Bercow, and described his election as a "vindictive" act by Labour MPs who were delivering "a two-fingered salute" to voters and to a future Government led by David Cameron.
Reports suggest some Conservatives want to see a challenge to Mr Bercow at the time of the next lax election, when a large turnover of MPs is expected to see a very different House of Commons in place.
Mr Bercow this morning sought to brush off claims that did not be delighted with cross-party support, saying: "I did enjoy very widespread support right across the House. I was informed by a very significant number of colleagues form my former party – my party at the time, the Conservative Party – that they would be supporting me in the secret total vote and I have every reason to believe that they did so.
"I am not going to get into a song game and bandy words through in what interval many people voted with regard to me from one party rather than another, but I said I had broad support and I meant it and it is true."
Mr Bercow insisted he was not even thinking hind part before the chance of a challenge at the time of the liberty, adding: "I am preoccupied with the rather important duty of trying to do my best to serve the House in this Parliament.
"My responsibility to the House of Commons is to devote myself wholeheartedly every day to the task of doing a good job as Speaker, by upholding the rights of backbench members, by facilitating fair play, by ensuring that the House does its business in the way that it should and as the public expects."
Mr Bercow, whose new job comes with a £141,866 salary and a lavish apartment on the banks of the Thames, said he would personally not claim the parliamentary Additional Costs Allowance to which MPs are entitled to cover the cost of staying away from home. He last year claimed the maximum permitted &beat;23,083.
