Speaker's Mandy Plan Destroys Democracy

Disturbing moves to dismantle democracy are underway with squeaker Bercow's plans to allow unelected Mandy to answer questions in commons. Spun as a 'modernising' breakthrough, the cross dressing merely shores up the current crony culture and deepens the divide between elected and unelected chosen ones.

What's left of democracy is already being whittled away. There's already an unelected head of state, an unelected second chamber and an unelected prime minister. Boney Blair is set to be anointed unelected president of a new EU empire.

The galling spectacle of unelected and unaccountable Mandy announcing laws in the Lords before elected MPs had time to draw breath is certainly an affront to the democratic process. But letting Mandy into the commons before he scurries back to the safe sanctum of the Lords is no solution.

The whole charade will not make unelected government ministers who sit in the upper house accountable to MPs. But the move will break the heart of the democratic process that has kept the commons and Lords apart.

Tories are already busy drawing up their shortlist of a new breed of goat to graze in the Lords to redress the balance after Blair stuffed the place with his cronies. The Orange Party doesn't expect to see much change there after the New Labour election wipe-out.

MPs who accept the speaker plan will fall into a carefully laid trap. That then becomes the acceptable norm for the protected chosen ones to call the shots, leaving elected MPs twiddling their thumbs.

The solution is to end the crony culture where pals are given a peerage and a full cabinet post. Arguments put forward by Blair and the gang that there's not enough talent in the lower chamber is an insult to elected representatives.

Voters have had their fill of pork-pie politics. They've had their fill of lies from a fag-end, discredited government disappearing up its own arrogance. For too long unaccountable ministers have been allowed to ride rough-shod over the electorate pushing through policies without recourse to the electorate.

Both unelected and unaccountable cabinet ministers Mandelson and Adonis have welcomed the move. But then they would wouldn't they?

The thin end of the wedge is racketed up a notch with plans to let both ministers appear at the bar of the House and eventually allow them to sit on MPs' green benches.

Then the distinction between elected commons lawmakers and the backstop of the upper chamber at the heart of our democratic process will disappear in a fuzzy blur of weasel-worded ermine.

The prime-minister-in-all-but-name already sticks in the throats of decent folk. There is no slicker smoother operator than Mandelson who can pay lip service to democracy.

Do any MPs really think they can get get one over on the Master before he legs it back to the Lords?

The house of lords is not accountable to MPs. That's the whole point of having two chambers to prevent the regimes of a banana republic.

Voters already have to suffer an oligarchy dressed up as democracy. Ministers who have not been voted in by the public and who cannot be removed from office by the public, makes a mockery of what little is left of elections.

What is so wrong with having the top jobs around the cabinet table chosen from the commons so that they are directly accountable to the electorate?

Black Rod will have to give up the tights and day job. What's the point of a state opening of parliament and the annual ritual of the lords and the commons coming together, when Mandy is left hiding behind the speaker's chair.