For my part, I can't see it happening. After two Labour Speakers on the trot, the Tories will rightly regard it as "their turn" and would view any attempt to shoehorn Campbell into the job as some sort of consolation prize from his old mate Gordon Brown.
It is also extremely unlikely that Labour MPs could be persuaded to vote for Ming in large numbers, given that many of them hate the Lib Dems with even more of a vengeance than they hate the Tories.
Personally, I would have loved the next Speaker to have been Ann Widdecombe, but she's stepping down from the Commons at the next election. I wonder if Ken Clarke would be interested?
3 comments:
Ian Duncan Smith could be in with a shout if the rumours are true that team Cameron want him out of the way.
hi paul, saw this on guido and know you used to be in the lobby...so I thought it would interest you...
EXCLUSIVE! Apparently, Maguire has finally managed to successfully knife the Mirror's Blairite political editor Oonagh Blackman. Blackman - appointed by her cloee "friend" and ex-Mirror editor Pier Moron - has always been in Brown-noser and associate editor Maguire's sights. Today, she was strangely enjoying an unexpected "holiday" amid rumours she'd been fired. Doubtless, it'll be dressed up as a resignation in some tedious spin-operation. Expect loyal (to Maguire) deputy Bob Roberts to be promoted into the empty chair and the Brownite subservience to continue....yawn...
Agree it would have been nice for Ming to get a 'parliamentary pension' appointment and few would have been so respected. Ken Clarke, having missed the top job so often would, I suspect, regard the Speakership as a bit beneath him. I know Selwyn Lloyd did it for a while but Ken is much more hubristic.
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