Streetwise

Something most unusual has happened. A Conservative politician has resigned; though not exactly over his initial gaffe, which was merely to imply that women might avoid being murdered by policemen if they would only do some work on law enforcement instead of leaving it all to the police. Demonstrating why he is a former PR man, the commissioner of North Yorkshire police subsequently blamed the media for broadcasting words which he had spoken during an interview for broadcast by the media; and with true-blue Conservative respect for democracy and personal responsibility, he refused to resign even after a unanimous vote of no confidence. He could not be sacked because the first Bullingdon Club administration had the foresight to withhold the power to dismiss police, fire and crime placemen should they lose a no-confidence vote, and what eventually tipped the balance and caused him to resign remains as yet unclear. Possibly he was annoyed at himself for not having been offered the Metropolitan Police, or even the Ministry for Affordable Justice.