By Matthew Champion.
UK Independence party leader Nigel Farage is to buck convention to challenge House of Commons speaker John Bercow for his parliamentary seat.
Ahead of a formal announcement at the party's conference tomorrow, the MEP said that Mr Bercow represents 'all that is wrong with British politics today'.
Tradition dictates that the speaker's seat is never contested, although that convention was broken when the Scottish national party put up a candidate in Michael Martin's constituency in 2005.
Mr Farage said on Thursday that he would follow suit in Mr Bercow's Buckingham seat in next year's general election, one of the safest Conservative seats in the country with a majority of more than 18,000.
But the Ukip leader told the Telegraph he intended to 'fight this very hard to become the MP'.
'This man represents all that is wrong with British politics today,' he explained of Mr Bercow, who was voted in by MPs in June despite lacking the support of most of his fellow Tories.
'He was embroiled in the expenses saga and he presides over a parliament that virtually does nothing.
'He is not a Conservative and yet he is sitting in one of the safest Conservative seats in the country. It means the people of Buckingham cannot vote for a Conservative even if they want to.'
Mr Bercow comfortably won the race to the speaker's chair in a secret ballot largely due to the backing of Labour MPs. There have been rumours an incoming Tory government would try to replace him at the next election.
There has also been talk that an independent Conservative candidate could try to unseat Mr Bercow, who was not immune from the Telegraph's expenses purge that led to the resignation of his predecessor Mr Martin, now Baron Martin of Springburn, of Port Dundas in the City of Glasgow.
He spent £20,000 of taxpayers' money on refurbishing the speaker's apartment in parliament, while he was also accused of flipping his second home for a London flat that allowed him to claim second home allowances.
UK Independence party leader Nigel Farage is to buck convention to challenge House of Commons speaker John Bercow for his parliamentary seat.
Ahead of a formal announcement at the party's conference tomorrow, the MEP said that Mr Bercow represents 'all that is wrong with British politics today'.
Tradition dictates that the speaker's seat is never contested, although that convention was broken when the Scottish national party put up a candidate in Michael Martin's constituency in 2005.
Mr Farage said on Thursday that he would follow suit in Mr Bercow's Buckingham seat in next year's general election, one of the safest Conservative seats in the country with a majority of more than 18,000.
But the Ukip leader told the Telegraph he intended to 'fight this very hard to become the MP'.
'This man represents all that is wrong with British politics today,' he explained of Mr Bercow, who was voted in by MPs in June despite lacking the support of most of his fellow Tories.
'He was embroiled in the expenses saga and he presides over a parliament that virtually does nothing.
'He is not a Conservative and yet he is sitting in one of the safest Conservative seats in the country. It means the people of Buckingham cannot vote for a Conservative even if they want to.'
Mr Bercow comfortably won the race to the speaker's chair in a secret ballot largely due to the backing of Labour MPs. There have been rumours an incoming Tory government would try to replace him at the next election.
There has also been talk that an independent Conservative candidate could try to unseat Mr Bercow, who was not immune from the Telegraph's expenses purge that led to the resignation of his predecessor Mr Martin, now Baron Martin of Springburn, of Port Dundas in the City of Glasgow.
He spent £20,000 of taxpayers' money on refurbishing the speaker's apartment in parliament, while he was also accused of flipping his second home for a London flat that allowed him to claim second home allowances.
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