Harman ducks questions of confidence in Martin over Green fiasco

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The Leader of the Commons steadfastly refused to be drawn into endorsing him during an interview on BBC Newsnight.

Interviewer Jeremy Paxman asked Ms Harman several times to say she had full confidence in Mr Martin and in the Commons' most senior official, the Serjeant at Arms, Jill Pay.

Ms Harman replied: "I am not saying I have full confidence in anything or anybody."

The minister's refusal came despite a concerted attempt by Labour MPs to shore up the Speaker's position against calls from some Conservative MPs for him to resign after the Damian Green fiasco.

Labour MP Stephen Pound, a friend of the Speaker, accused Ms Harman of disloyalty. He said: "It certainly is not particularly collegiate or comradely."

He said that Ms Harman was the only person on the government benches who was denying full confidence in both Mr Martin and Ms Pay.

However, very senior MPs are criticising Mr Martin in private.

One respected Labour figure said he was dismayed that the Speaker blamed Ms Pay for making mistakes when the responsibility for protecting MPs from unjust search was his.

The senior MP said: "The Speaker should have flown back to London immediately and called a conference of officials and advisers to decide how to handle the situation."

Powerful MPs have rallied behind the scenes to defend Ms Pay. One very senior figure told the Standard: "The inquiry will show that Jill Pay... handled the matter exactly as she was supposed to."

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith will today make a statement on Green's arrest last week, when his offices and homes were searched by counter-terrorism officers.