Ashdown pulls out

I'm pleased Paddy Ashdown has been forced to rule out taking the post of UN envoy to Afghanistan, in response to opposition within the country. He follows Neil Kinnock as a party leader whom the electorate twice rejected as Prime Minister, but who nonetheless has managed to make a decent living off the taxpayer in quasi-governmental positions ever since. I wouldn't like to see former party leaders automatically ruled out for roles with the EU or UN, but nor should they automatically land on their feet. I don't remember Ashdown or Kinnock being generally accepted as great statesmen whose qualifications were obvious when they were in their prime, and nor should they suddenly be granted such reverence once they leave office.