If you are a benefits cheat, why should you feel any shame when the employment minister acts as he does? If you are a peddler of filth or a fraudster, why should you feel any shame when the Home Secretary, who is meant to uphold the criminal law, acts as she does? Doesn't it just sap your confidence when the likes of Stuart Bell MP seek to root out the whistle blower while being silent on the blatant behaviour of his ministerial Parliamentary colleagues?
The maintenance of respect for our national leaders is important. The appalling behaviour of so many Labour Parliamentarians - particularly these two ministers - eats away at our social fabric. It eats away at the respect, civility, honesty and decency that we collectively try to build in our society.
Parliamentarians should set an example. But how to turn it all around? If it were down to you, would you strip these ministers of office? What other steps would you take to restore trust in our political system?
