Old Bones

New Labour's predilection for back-of-the-envelope legislation has given an unexpected boost to the ignorance and cultural vandalism which will inevitably result from the practice of Gove History. A law introduced by the Ministry of Dawn Raids and Deportations in 2008 requires all human remains found in England and Wales to be re-buried within two years, be they recent, Roman or Neanderthal. The Ministry described the law as an "interim measure", presumably until it can be verified that permanent interment is not a soft option for any stray vertebrae or distal phalanges which may be asylum seekers in disguise; and there are no guidelines on where the re-burials should take place or what records should be kept. Evidently the loss of priceless archaeological evidence was one more thing about which New Labour was intensely relaxed. The Conservatives, whose main quarrel with New Labour is that the vandalism didn't go far enough, will no doubt extend the provisions of the law to allow the pre-mortem interment of state pension claimants.