Dame Eleanor Laing, who often sits in for Mr Bercow in the Speaker’s chair, has urged the role to return to one that is an “independent anchor… unaffected by an allegiance to any political objective”. 

Dame Eleanor, a Conservative MP who has thrown her hat into the ring to replace Mr Bercow, added “the occupant of the Chair can only earn respect by showing respect” when talking about “aggression and arrogance” shown at Prime Minister’s Questions.

The comments, told to the Sunday Telegraph, come after Mr Bercow was accused of repeatedly waded into the Brexit argument to thwart the UK’s exit from the European Union.

His interventions have led to Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the House of Commons, to urge the Speaker “needs to be impartial”.

Dame Eleanor said: “Parliament and the country are at breaking point over Brexit, in large part due to the perception that our tried and tested constitutional traditions are being manipulated in order to load the dice in one particular direction.

“The election of a new Speaker is an opportunity for MPs to work together to restore that broken trust and to plan a future where we do things rather differently.”

She added: “First, the way in which we make laws must not only be fair, it must be seen to be fair. The Speaker needs to be an independent anchor of our proceedings, unaffected by an allegiance to any political objective or to any party or group within Parliament, upholding our rules and conventions and applying them consistently.

“That principle, the Rule of Law, has bound this country together for centuries and is the fundamental basis of our constitution. It has endured, not for some old-fashioned, reactionary reason but simply because it is fair and means that everyone is treated equally.

“But it seems as if we have strayed from these concepts in the recent past and too many decisions have been made behind closed doors.”

Dame Eleanor’s comments follow a chaotic day in Westminster when MPs voted to approve Oliver Letwin’s amendment to the Brexit vote.

That saw Boris Johnson forced to send a letter to the European Union President asking for a delay.

However, the Prime Minister refused to sign the letter and sent separate notes urging Brussels and European leaders to reject a delay.

And today, EU’s chief Brexit negotiator ignored the shenanigans in Parliament when he updated ambassadors on the UK’s exit.

Michel Barnier said: “It was a very short and normal meeting of EU27 Ambassadors to launch the next steps of the EU ratification of the agreement.”

And when asked whether the EU would offer Britain an extension he replied: “Mr Tusk will consult in the next few days.”

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