Michael Martin

British politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons, a position in which complete impartiality is a prerequisite, from 2000 to 2009. A member of the Labour Party prior to becoming speaker, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Springburn from 1979 to 2005 and for Glasgow North East until 2009. He was elected as Speaker of the House of Commons on 23 October 2000, remaining in the office for nine years until his involuntary resignation.

On his election to the post of Speaker in 2000, he was the first Catholic to serve in the role since the Reformation. He resigned from the position on 21 June 2009, as a result of diminishing parliamentary and public confidence owing to his role in the expenses scandal. He stood down from the House of Commons on the following day.

Martin met Mary McLay at the Heatovent factory, where she worked as an assembly worker, and they married in 1966. The couple had a son and a daughter. His son Paul Martin was the Labour Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Springburn from 1999 to 2011, then for the Glasgow Provan constituency from 2011 until his defeat at the 2016 Scottish election.