Closing In

With his usual lightning perspicacity, the Glorious Successor has realised that it might be expedient to try and look as if he feels the public's pain about the expenses scam, at least to the extent that his own tokenism matches that of Daveybloke's Cuddly Claimants. Accordingly, he has decreed that, until such time as the Freedom of Information Act can be given appropriate dental treatment, any Labour MP who is found to have made improper claims "will be automatically deselected and barred from standing at the next general election". Improper claims being presumably those that are not merely excessive but are actually outside the parsimonious, Church of Scotland rules which MPs impose upon themselves, it is a little surprising that Gordon, or at least James Purnell, has not promised prosecutions, fines, community payback, tagging or custodial sentences for the miscreants in question. Surely they're not afraid of prejudicing whatever inquiries may be undertaken by the best police force in the world.