LONDON , England ( CNN ) -- Michael Martin , the speaker of Britain 's House of Commons , said Tuesday he would resign in the face of widespread public anger over expense claims by lawmakers . Michael Martin , the House of Commons Speaker , has tendered his resignation . Martin , whose statement lasted barely a minute , said he would step down June 21 . He is the first speaker to be forced out of office since 1695 . Martin said he was stepping down in order to promote `` unity '' in the House of Commons . Prime Minister Gordon Brown later Tuesday announced recommendations for comprehensive reforms to the expenses system to put an end to the `` abuses and misjudgments of the past . '' Watch how the rules have led to abuse » . He proposed a review of expense claims of the past few years by an independent panel , and the introduction of an outside agency to regulate expense reimbursements , which Parliament currently does itself . Parliament at `` Westminster can not operate like some gentlemen 's club , '' he said . `` There has got to be transparency . There has got to be a proper audit . '' Watch more of Brown 's speech » . The reforms are currently only proposals . It is not clear if they will be implemented . Brown also paid tribute to Martin and added that he had chaired a meeting of party leaders Tuesday afternoon to discuss an overhaul of the expenses system . The speaker traditionally chairs debates and ensures protocol is followed . But part of the reason MPs are now focusing their anger on Martin is that his office also handles expense claims . Watch more on Martin 's resignation » . Critics say he allowed claims to run amok and failed to recognize the depth of public disgust at the amounts being claimed -- into the tens of thousands of dollars for some lawmakers . Martin was savaged by MPs on Monday after he addressed parliament , with one lawmaker after another demanding to know when he would resign . Politicians across the political spectrum have been under fire after weeks of front-page headlines revealing their expense claims . What do you think about the expense scandal ? They included requests for reimbursements for mortgages that had been paid off , members of the same family claiming the same expenses and reimbursement for lavish home furnishings . The justice minister , Shahid Malik , resigned from the Cabinet over his claims , which he insisted were within the allowable limits . The governing Labour Party also cut ties with MP Elliot Morley , a former Cabinet minister , over his expense claims . Watch London cabbies speak out against lawmakers » . The expenses scandal came to light in a series of recent front-page reports in The Daily Telegraph newspaper . The expense claims were to be made public in the summer , but the Telegraph obtained them early . Many lawmakers put in the spotlight by the newspaper insist they broke no rules . London 's Metropolitan Police announced shortly before Martin 's resignation that they would not investigate the leaking of the expense reports to the press . `` The leak of documents is not something that the ( Metropolitan Police ) would condone , '' they said in a statement , but felt it was unlikely they would obtain the evidence they need to launch a successful prosecution . The police had not yet decided whether to investigate whether politicians broke the law in their expense claims , the statement added .
NEW : British PM announces plans for reforming system . Martin is the first minister forced out of office since 1945 . Parliament had demanded he fall on his sword as part of changes to system .