With Deepest Sympathy

With Remembrance Sunday a couple of weeks away, and with a desperate Treasury plunging into its last resort of printing money to keep the bankers' bonuses up to their accustomed standard, the Government has made clear its respect and gratitude towards those who die in its wars by clawing back money from the family of a soldier who was imprudent enough to be killed before the end of the month. The Ministry for War and the Colonies sent a letter, no doubt personalised as far as possible given the state of the Government's IT capabilities, informing the family that the man's refund for holiday time not taken had been overpaid by £433. A spokesbeing for the Ministry said that "we never ask families of those killed in service to pay money back", and then clarified in the next breath that there are, in fact, circumstances in which the families of those killed in service are asked to pay money back: "if there is an overpayment of salary and further payments are due to an estate, adjustments are made", just the same as when Members of Parliament over-claim on their expenses and have to pay back part of what they stole at their own convenience. We're all in it together.