I blogged on this story earlier in the day, but there are fact that have since emerged and I feel that we actually have something quite serious going on here... so I hope you’ll excuse a second story on the same subject.
When the three MPs in the dock requested that they should not in fact stand in the actual dock like common criminals but sit on the body of the court like they were spectators, and then proceeded to put forward a defence that they did not recognise the jurisdiction of an English court over them but, because they were politicians they should be judged by THEIR peers, not by OUR peers like us ordinary people are, there was an element of the surreal about it.
There they were, three fat cat MPs who had been on the fiddle because they thought no one would ever find out, had been brought to book, just as if they were common criminals. But they were going to try one last gasp attempt to get off with it; one last throw of the dice and use of the “get out of jail because you’re an MP” card that is the Westminster Monopoly set.
So we all had a little laugh at the pathetic low life and watched as the first part of their plan fell apart. “Can we sit in the posh seats?” they asked, expecting, no doubt that the judge would say "Yes Sirs". But he didn’t.... and so we thought: Nice one. Hopefully the rest of it will fall apart too. The use of some ancient Bill of Rights is a bit of a laugh after all....they can't be serious......can they?
Until just a few moments later, the announcement came that the estimable Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions in England, had had to drop the case against Uddin of the other place, because of a ruling by some official of that House that its members could call their first home a place that they only visited once a month. Possibly only for a few minutes. It certainly must be so, because it would be cold comfort farm if we visited Mrs Uddin’s first home for any amount of time... given that there is more or less no furniture. Paul, that well known Labour donor who has also been let off fraud charges, might have difficulty visiting his first home as he’s never actually been there. He owns it, but it’s a staff flat in one of his hotels currently occupied by one of his staff.
Clearly the joke that had been the MPs trying to put themselves above the law has become reality with the people of the upper chamber. It has put Keir Starmer in a position where he cannot prosecute people who are quite clearly guilty of an offence. Uddin will be disciplined by the House of Lords whose maximum penalty is to ask her not to attend the House for 6 months!!!
In short, a ruling by an unelected official in the House of Lords has put the members of that House above the law that the rest of us live by. Hundreds and hundreds of thousands, indeed millions of our pounds have been taken under false pretences by this unelected and largely useless body of fat cats and we can't do diddly about it.
Are we just going to sit here and take this?
When the three MPs in the dock requested that they should not in fact stand in the actual dock like common criminals but sit on the body of the court like they were spectators, and then proceeded to put forward a defence that they did not recognise the jurisdiction of an English court over them but, because they were politicians they should be judged by THEIR peers, not by OUR peers like us ordinary people are, there was an element of the surreal about it.
There they were, three fat cat MPs who had been on the fiddle because they thought no one would ever find out, had been brought to book, just as if they were common criminals. But they were going to try one last gasp attempt to get off with it; one last throw of the dice and use of the “get out of jail because you’re an MP” card that is the Westminster Monopoly set.
So we all had a little laugh at the pathetic low life and watched as the first part of their plan fell apart. “Can we sit in the posh seats?” they asked, expecting, no doubt that the judge would say "Yes Sirs". But he didn’t.... and so we thought: Nice one. Hopefully the rest of it will fall apart too. The use of some ancient Bill of Rights is a bit of a laugh after all....they can't be serious......can they?
Until just a few moments later, the announcement came that the estimable Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions in England, had had to drop the case against Uddin of the other place, because of a ruling by some official of that House that its members could call their first home a place that they only visited once a month. Possibly only for a few minutes. It certainly must be so, because it would be cold comfort farm if we visited Mrs Uddin’s first home for any amount of time... given that there is more or less no furniture. Paul, that well known Labour donor who has also been let off fraud charges, might have difficulty visiting his first home as he’s never actually been there. He owns it, but it’s a staff flat in one of his hotels currently occupied by one of his staff.
Clearly the joke that had been the MPs trying to put themselves above the law has become reality with the people of the upper chamber. It has put Keir Starmer in a position where he cannot prosecute people who are quite clearly guilty of an offence. Uddin will be disciplined by the House of Lords whose maximum penalty is to ask her not to attend the House for 6 months!!!
In short, a ruling by an unelected official in the House of Lords has put the members of that House above the law that the rest of us live by. Hundreds and hundreds of thousands, indeed millions of our pounds have been taken under false pretences by this unelected and largely useless body of fat cats and we can't do diddly about it.
Are we just going to sit here and take this?
....................................
Pictured: Baroness (like she deserves that title) Udders, who is apparently relieved... you bet you she's relieved. Aren't you just sweetie? She's got away with £100,000 of our dosh, just like her mate ex-Home Secretary Smith, the dodgy lodger.
