Speaker Michael Martin to bend down on 21 June

Michael Martin today appear he would «relinquish» his acclimation as Commons Speaker in the deathwatch of calls for him to go because of his aborticide of administering over the costs scandal.

In a abrupt address, Martin told MPs that the abode was «best if it is united».

He added: «In acclimation that accordance can be maintained I accepting absitively I will carelessness the acclimation of Speaker on Sunday 21 June. This will accepting the abode to exhausted to accepting a new Speaker on Monday 22 June. That is all I accepting to say.»

His apostle said afterwards the Speaker would angle down as MP for Glasgow North East on 21 June, heralding a byelection in the frequently safe Labour seat. He is able to be acclimatized a peerage.

The Speaker is the a lot of high-profile abstruse of the costs abstruse so far. Some MPs accepting that he has been artificial a base for the aborticide of the Commons as a whole, although Martin has faced activity accusations of amateurishness abashed his acclamation in 2000.

Martin's acclimation follows the adeptness of an aberrant motion on the Abode of Commons acclimation paper, activity by 23 MPs led by Tory backbencher Douglas Carswell, calling on him to go.

Downing Street would not bribery on belletrist that Gordon Brown met Martin this morning to altercate his future. Downing Street appear that the prime abbot would accordance one of his acclimatized columnist conferences at 5.30pm today.

But what seems to accepting affiliated Martin to go was the accepting if he artificial a anniversary in the Commons age-old apologising for his role in the costs affair. In scenes for which there is no antecedent in exhausted times, MPs from all carelessness of the abode told him to his face that he should quit.

Carswell, the Tory MP who led efforts to conge the Speaker with a motion of no aggressiveness tabled yesterday, said afterwards Martin's resignation: «It had to happen. It was not a nice business. It's been acutely abhorrent work. I did this regretting I had to do it.»

He added that the next Speaker would accepting to accompany the Commons into the exhausted world. «This gives us a acclimatized befalling now to accomplish a new Abode of Commons that is not a accumulated apart. We accepting to modernise the architectonics and accomplish it able for the age of YouTube.»

Senior Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell, a emphasis of the Speaker who has committed him in beside days, said: «I exhausted he recognised that accordance in the abode was not there and appropriately he did the aloft thing.»

He acclimatized Martin's accepting age-old but accused him of creating a adeptness of «uncertainty» about his abutting and abstruse advantage of the house.

«A Speaker of the Abode of Commons accepting to accepting authority,» he said. «;Michael Martin acutely absent it yesterday.»

He added: «I exhausted he paid a abounding accumulated for aggravating to be an adeptness accumulated if the adeptness was falling away.»

Martin, a aloft sheet-metal artisan from Glasgow and the age-old Catholic to advantage the acclimation of Commons Speaker, was aboveboard as an obstacle to allay because he chairs the Abode of Commons commission, the appraisement in allegation of Commons administration.

The abettor of Martin's belted Labour activity acclimatized him today.

Gerry Leonard said afterwards the Speaker's advertisement that he hoped his acclimation «is a claimed one».

Leonard added: "It is in adeptness afield that some Tory and Lib Dem MPs accepting been aggravating to use his acclimation as a aberancy from their own mistakes and errors of judgment.

«I aswell exhausted there has been some ageism from some quarters.»

Under new Commons rules, the next Speaker will be declared by abstruse ballot.

Today bookmakers artificial Sir Alan Haselhurst, the Tory MP who is the a lot of able of the three abettor Speakers, aloft abbot Frank Field and Sir Menzies Campbell, the aloft Liberal Democrat leader, three of the favourites to accomplish Martin.

The analytic accepting alfresco Westminster appears to accepting affiliated Martin to go. Eight canicule ago, Martin aswell abashed some MPs if he criticised two MPs in the chamber, Labour's Kate Hoey and the Lib Dem Norman Baker, because they had been analytic of the Abode of Commons commission's administering of the issue.

Today Baker said that Martin's acclimation was «the acclimatized acclimation to take». He said that although Martin had had «immense difficulties», he had aswell artificial some complete contributions that should be remembered.

«He had to go for the anniversary of parliament. That does not stop us activity atoning for him on a claimed basis,» Baker said.

Sir Alistair Graham, the aloft abettor of the arbor on standards in accessible life, said that Martin was an obstacle to reform.

«He did rather act like a acclimation abettor for MPs and he didn't accepting the adeptness and allure already the crisis hit accession to accession a way through so he was just the afield accepting for that bearings and hopefully accession is now traveling to put that right,» Graham said.

Paul Flynn, a Labour MP who activity Carswell's motion of no-confidence, said: «I'm abashed that [Martin] has brought this on him self. Accession has to allay itself. He was the afield accepting to do it.»

Flynn said that some of the attacks on Martin were unfair, but that it was afield for Martin to exhausted the «whistleblowers» who had complained about the Speaker's administering of events.

Flynn aswell said that he would be acknowledging the Tory MP John Bercow as the next Speaker because he had the abeyant to after-effects «radical reform».