John Bercow and his bullies bring shame on our Parliament - Telegraph.co.uk

Right from the moment that Ipsa was created, just over two years ago, Bercow has tolerated a series of vicious and unscrupulous assaults on the expenses watchdog. Ipsa staff have been abused and intimidated – one was even reduced to tears when subjected to a foul-mouthed personal attack by Denis MacShane, who was this month finally obliged to resign his Rotherham seat because of his fraudulent expenses claims.

Another Labour MP, Ann Clwyd, accused, under parliamentary privilege, a member of Ipsa staff, who has since left the organisation, of leaking details of MPs' expenses to the press. This attack was especially low grade because, as Ms Clwyd would have known, the official in question was in no position to answer back. There is no evidence that Speaker Bercow has ever rebuked Ms Clwyd for this cowardly attack. Her allegation was never proved. Unsavoury practices are returning to the Commons, as a Channel 4 Dispatches film, to be screened shortly I believe, will reveal.

Meanwhile, Bercow allowed the full machinery of the House of Commons to be deployed in an effort to scrutinise Ipsa and cause it embarrassment. Over the past two years this tiny organisation has been subjected to no fewer than five separate audits and parliamentary reviews. It has been examined by the public accounts committee, by the office of government commerce, by the committee on members' expenses, and twice by the National Audit Office. Now, it goes without saying that Ipsa should not be exempt from scrutiny. The level of examination endured by the watchdog is, however, unprecedented for a body of its importance and size. It amounts to repeated and deliberate harassment.

Yesterday, Ipsa cracked. Four of its five board members are leaving, reportedly concerned about the meddling by Bercow. These are all serious and respected people, including a former high court judge, Sir Scott Baker, who carried out the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Professor Isobel Sharp, who has served on the UK's Accounting Standards Board.

The Ipsa four are victims of a power grab engineered by Bercow. Ever since the regulatory body was set up two years ago, his MPs have been determined to reclaim the right to govern their own affairs that they were forced to cede in the wake of the expenses scandal.

The gambit being used by Bercow is exactly the same as the deeply unsavoury tactic used to bring down Elizabeth Filkin, who briefly served as parliamentary commissioner for standards 10 years ago. Mrs Filkin incurred the enmity of MPs because she took her post seriously and exposed an ugly pattern of corruption, bullying and greed at Westminster. Before too long, they had had enough and – under the Speakership of Bercow's disgraced predecessor Michael Martin – invited her to reapply for her own job, which she rightly refused to do.

Now Bercow has tried the same ploy with the Ipsa board (he claims to be following legal advice) and they, like Mrs Filkin, have got the message. But Bercow has inserted an extra and deeply disturbing ingredient. In a further threat to Ipsa's independence, Peter Atkinson, a former Tory MP, has been brought on to the panel that will appoint the new board. Atkinson, who enjoyed a parliamentary career of unblemished mediocrity, was one of the now discredited group who fought hard to keep MPs' expenses claims secret three years ago. Had he had his way, the expenses scandal would never have surfaced. To me, he looks very much like Bercow's stooge, put on the panel to restore the old backscratching parliamentary culture.

For those of us who love the House of Commons and believe the British system of parliamentary democracy can be the finest in the world, this is an ugly and very dangerous moment. For it cannot be supposed that Bercow is acting on his own. Just as Speaker Martin had the backing of the three main parties when he destroyed Elizabeth Filkin, so we can assume that the Speaker's deadly attack on Ipsa is being quietly sanctioned by both David Cameron's Tories and Ed Miliband's Labour.

The two Tory Cabinet ministers who are most closely involved in the Commons (and have the closest dealings with Bercow) are the Leader of the House, Andrew Lansley, and the Chief Whip, Sir George Young. Lansley spent more than £4,000 of taxpayers' money renovating a thatched Tudor cottage just before he sold it. Sir George's expenses claims were exemplary. However, he bears great responsibility because he was chairman of the standards and privileges committee during the period when the scandal was at its worst. I regret to say that Sir George ignored warnings that the abuses were going on, and looked the other way.

We cannot hope that Mr Bercow, Mr Lansley or Sir George would ever lift a finger to preserve the integrity of British public life. It is time that David Cameron intervened personally to bring a halt to the Speaker's outrageous plan to diminish Ipsa – or before long he, too, will be discredited by this sordid and unpleasant affair.