The former Commons Speaker, Michael Martin, has had his controversial peerage quietly confirmed - in the middle of the Parliamentary recess.
He will take up the title of 'Baron Martin of Springburn, of Port Dundas in the City of Glasgow' after the honour was conferred by the Queen last week.
Mr Martin was the first Speaker of the House of Commons to be forced to resign in more than 300 years.
It is established practice for former speakers to be elevated to the Lords, but there had been calls for Mr Martin to be denied a peerage after his flawed response to the MPs' expenses scandal.
After losing the support of the House of Commons following repeated attempts to block the publication of MPs' full allowances, he resigned in May.
The announcement that he would soon be joining them on the Lords' red benches sparked anger among other peers last night.
Lord Oakeshott, a Liberal Democrat spokesman in the Lords, said: 'Mr Martin's period as Speaker diminished both the authority of the position and the credibility of the House of Commons. It is wrong that he should pick up a peerage automatically in the Lords after he failed as Speaker.'
Springburn was the name of Mr Martin's Glasgow North East constituency before boundary reorganisation in 2005, while Port Dundas is the site of a large whisky distillery in the city.
No by-election will be held in the constituency until the autumn. Lord Oakeshott said: 'He's chosen Springburn as his title but the people of Springburn deserve to have a representative in Parliament.
'This is a disgraceful delay and the people deserve a chance to elect a new MP now.'
The news was slipped out in the London Gazette this week. The publication, which reports Government and Palace announcements, said: 'The Queen has been pleased by Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm dated 25 August 2009, to confer the dignity of a Barony of the United Kingdom for life upon the Right Honourable Michael John Martin, by the name, style and title of Baron Martin of Springburn, of Port Dundas in the City of Glasgow.'
The Queen's approval came despite a warning from sleaze watchdogs that elevating Mr Martin would damage the reputation of the House of Lords. In a letter to Gordon Brown, the House of Lords Appointments Commission said Mr Martin's personal expenses claims were open to question.
But Mr Brown, who uses his powers of patronage to recommend peers to the Queen, overrode their concerns.
As an ex-Speaker, 63-year-old Mr Martin is entitled to an annual pension of around £38,000. When his MP's pension kicks in at 65, the former sheet metal worker will be receiving around £80,000 from tax-payer-funded pension pots worth £1.4million.
As a peer he would also qualify for £174 for each night he spends in London on Lords' business, adding up to a possible £25,000 a year, and he may claim £3,000 in office costs.
Mr Martin announced in a 34-second statement on May 19 that he was stepping down as Speaker and also as an MP, sparking a by-election which could prove disastrous for the Labour Party. The Scottish Nationalist Party is hoping to snatch the once safe seat of Glasgow North East.
Mr Martin was replaced as Speaker by John Bercow in June.
Explore more:
- People:
- Gordon Brown,
- Michael Martin,
- John Bercow
- Places:
- London,
- Glasgow,
- United Kingdom
- Organisations:
- House of Commons,
- House of Lords,
- Labour Party
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1209809/Lord-Gorbals-Michael-Martins-controversial-peerage-confirmed-middle-Parliamentary-recess.html#ixzz0PYNkQzPG
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