The office of Speaker of the British House of Commons is a position laden with world-class Tradition and Authority.

Alas we have the current occupant, Michael Martin. A man from humble origins who is just not up to it.

Legend has it that on an official Speaker visit to Poland he and his wife were housed in a smart hotel suite (as previously used by members of the Royal Family). Out came the Cif to clean the bathrooms ("you can’t be too careful").

His Speakership has been characterised by charmless clumsiness. Now he is rightly under heavy fire for the incompetence and abuses which have flourished on his watch.

The issue is simple. Once the very idea emerges formally in public that someone in a position like his has lost the confidence of the people he is leading, he has indeed lost that confidence and should scrape togther some dignity and step straight down.

And how does he respond? He drags out the rule book and tries to play the sort of procedural trick which might work to buy some time in a conflict-ridden small town darts club.

But even then he doesn’t appear to know the rules:

But it was David Davis who asked the lethal question. He asked the Speaker how the motion could be made a "substantive".

And the Speaker said: "Let me ask the Clerk." The House looked on, watching the tutorial taking place. There was quietness. Thirty seconds passed as the Clerk gave the Speaker a one-two-three on one of the most basic rules of procedure.

So, there we all saw at length, in plain view, on national television, a Speaker so bereft of speakerly qualities unable even to say how a motion gets on the order paper.

Will the Labour leadership scrape together some of their remaining honour and throw him overboard?

Ignominy.

UPDATE:  Yes. Better late than never. Gone. To a huge pension.