I have been on a summer break from blogging, but the appointment of John Bercow as Speaker interests me.

I said here earlier why I don’t like Bercow.  He’s a flipper, not of houses (although maybe that too – I haven’t been following his expenses details) but of opinions.  He adopts the opinions of whatever political tendency he thinks will get him his next leg-up.  If he continues to do that, and there is no reason to think he won’t, then the Labour Party could soon find itself cursing the day it ever knew him.  Because, Cameronism is now on the up-and-up.  Having grovelled all over the Labour Party to get the job, Bercow may now turn on their government, for instance by bollocking it for making policy announcements outside the House of Commons instead of in it or for not answering questions properly when in the House.  He could, in other words, now do another flip and turn himself into something worth another dozen seats to the Conservatives.  He could be another fistful of nails in the Labour coffin.  Bercow is nothing if not ambitious.  Having done what he thought he had to do to get the job, his next project will be to go down in (on) History, by actually doing the job rather well, by which I mean doing it in a manner which impresses those of his contemporaries who, he calculates, will write the history books.

If the story unfolds as I am now guessing (all this is only a guess), then Bercow could turn into the Great Man of Parliament.  Is this what Great Men are often really like?  Yes.  I recall that movie in which Simon Ward, playing the Young Winston of the title, said, after an only mildly meritorious and grossly exhibitionist military escapade: “Will I get a medal?” From shameless, party-switching, opportunist, greasy-pole-climbing shit to Great Man.  It’s been done before.

Watch the looks on Labour faces very carefully, when they talk about Bercow during the dying months of their vile and plundering government, as he turns into yet another torment for them.  If he does.  And if he does, I’ll definitely be doing one of those I told you so postings, linking back smugly to this one.