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After presiding over a decision to resign by Sir Nicholas and Lady Winterton, two of his MPs who broke Commons expenses rules, David Cameron has attempted to seize the initiative in response to public outrage with the House.
And as the Conservative leader calls for an end to the Government's control of General Election timing, Alan Johnson, Health Secretary and potentially a Labour leadership candidate, has demanded a referendum on a modified form of proportional representation.
Both men are right to respond to the anger now being directed towards individual MPs who have helped themselves to taxpayers' money with abandon. However, Mr Johnson's enthusiasm for proportional representation means more party control of candidates via the list system. It means governing coalitions stitched up in smoke-filled rooms by party fixers - hardly the throwing open of the system that would suit the present mood.
Mr Cameron's programme of redistribution of power to individuals, including a cut in the total number of MPs and a call for fixed-term Parliaments, so that the Prime Minister can no longer time elections to suit his chances, is much more radical. He also wants Parliament to do a better job of scrutinising legislation.
That means giving the Commons more power to control the timetable for bills, rather than as at present allowing the Government routinely to guillotine debate. Select committee members should be chosen by backbenchers, and voting on the committee stage of bills freed up from control by the whips.
These are solid proposals. It is a pity that they may be obscured by a gimmicky suggestion for parliamentary progress reports via phone text message.
However, by asking why the Prime Minister should be able to juggle so freely with the general election date, Mr Cameron has put pressure on Mr Brown to explain why he will not go to the country right away and allow voters to pick a new and less discredited set of representatives.
Cycling in safety
Mayor Boris Johnson is in a hurry to give cycling the attention he promised during his election campaign.
The series of events he unveils today sends a positive message that London is becoming a cycling city, and rightly so.
Cycling reduces emissions, eases pressure on public transport and makes good use of scarce road space.
However, as this newspaper's cycling campaign has highlighted, a wholesale change in attitudes from councils, Transport for London and motorists is required in order to transform the capital into a place fit for commuting by bike.
We need to see that the Mayor is winning the battle with town halls which are dragging their feet over new cycle lanes and safety schemes.
After all, as the Mayor has discovered for himself in a near-miss in east London, collisions involving lorries are more of a hazard for cyclists than falling under the proverbial bus.
Poetic justice
In the aftermath of Ruth Padel's resignation as Professor of Poetry at Oxford, the reputation of the university's three-century old post must be restored.
It would be a piece of poetic justice if Derek Walcott, the Nobel laureate who decided not to stand against Ms Padel after the emergence of a 27-year-old sexual harassment claim, were now to put himself forward again and win.
He had apologised after the harassment incident and nearly three decades have elapsed. When Ms Padel alerted this newspaper to information about that and another incident, we were concerned that it amounted to a smear campaign and reported the matter with caution.
Now Ms Padel has resigned, we feel obliged to publish the full story. Shelley maintained that poets were the unacknowledged legislators of the world.
At a time when our actual legislators have let us down, it is a great shame that our ex-Professor of Poetry has also been found wanting.
Reader views (2)
Brown is up to his old tricks. Dither, dither. dither. Why leave the job of expelling his dodgy ministers to the voters? It is his job and the more he dithers the more the voters will turn against him. David is outpacing Gordon by miles every day.
- Albert Hall, hove england, 26/05/2009 16:06
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I see this as posturing by senior politicians in an attempt to move the focus of attention from their expense excesses.
Does anyone really believe that if he ever becomes Prime Minister David Cameron will voluntarily give up his powers? Of course he will not.
We will get the excuse that
"The finances are in a worst state then we thought, We must concentrate on them first."
"Sorting out the economic position will have to take priority over all else".
So these reforms will go on the back burner and quietly disappear into that great big broken promises bin in the sky!
Remember Tony Blair's promise to give us "Open Government and an end of Spin" forgotten once in power.
Gorgon Brown's promise to give us a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, another broken promise by a sitting Prime Minister.
When I see a written promise to make party manifestos a legal contract between MPs and the electorate, then I will believe they are sincere on Electoral reform.
If manifestos were legal then we may get some pre-election sensible and achievable promises in these manifestos, instead of rash promises just to con the gullible into voting for them.
- Rosieinlondon, London UK, 26/05/2009 12:53
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