The only problem is that senior Conservatives are frightened to repeat in public what they say in private; namely that "Boy George" is too smug for his own good and could now be caught out by Westminster's expenses crisis.

David Cameron's response to the expenses scandal has been calculated. He's been only too happy to force many of the Tory "old guard" to step down – these are, predominantly, individuals who could be trouble-makers if the Conservatives come to power.

But, as the Tory message on the economy becomes more and more muddled, so, too, has Cameron's attitude to Shadow Cabinet members, like Osborne and Alan Duncan, who appear to have "milked" the system for their own financial advantage.

Cameron appears to turn a blind eye to their apparent indiscretions, presumably because he cannot afford the political embarrassment of losing any of his so-called big hitters.

I don't know why Osborne took out an allowances-subsidised home loan on his home in Cheshire for nearly £5,000 more than the £445,000 he originally paid for it, given his own well-documented personal wealth. It is up to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards to ascertain an adequate explanation.

However, the Tories are not happy. They claim that this is a Labour witch-hunt – and will look to take down one of the Government's "big hitters" if their man is rapped over the knuckles, or forced to step aside.

To me, this does not appear to be the behaviour of a responsible Opposition that is promising to clean up politics. But, in many respects, it goes to the heart of the issue.

For, if a Cabinet member had replicated the Shadow Chancellor's financial arrangements to the last penny, would George Osborne be supporting them – or would he be calling for their resignation in the sniding, and vitriolic, manner that has become his political hallmark?

I also disagree with another aspect of Osborne's defence; namely that he needed an adequate constituency home. True, but it was his choice
to buy a property that appears to have half of the Cheshire countryside in its grounds rather than a "two-up, two down".

It is for this reason that the Osborne case has far greater significance than every other expenses indiscretion. For, if he has broken Parliamentary rules, or even their spirit, how can the public be expected to trust Tory utterances on the economy?

It's the same with Andy Coulson, Cameron's director of communications. How can the Tories be trusted when they employ an individual who edited a red-top Sunday newspaper that broke the law to acquire celebrity tittle-tattle?

Cameron's response to the crises engulfing his two key lieutenants will speak volumes about his judgment and suitability for high office. If he fails, Gordon Brown could – just – be handed an electoral lifeline.

As such, the stakes could not be higher – for Labour or the Conservatives.



STANDING outside the House of Commons last week, some Japanese tourists were very excited when they spotted a politician approaching them attired in a very trim white suit.

They immediately thought they were in the presence of Martin Bell, the distinguished war correspondent who was MP for Tatton before the aforementioned George Osborne.

They were not. The man approaching them was, in fact, a well- tanned Andrew MacKay, one of the Tory backbenchers shamed into resigning over the expenses scandal.

A gentleman very quickly pointed this out to our visitors in fairly un-Parliamentary language.



DAVID Davis, the Haltemprice and Howden MP, apparently cut a lonely figure as he meandered through Portcullis House at Westminster the other day.

I wasn't surprised. Could it be that he was reflecting on where it has all gone so wrong? A year ago, he was Shadow Home Secretary and one of Britain's foremost politicians. And then he chose to resign in order to force a "vanity" by-election over civil liberties.

Given how this issue has been eclipsed by the economic downturn, there must be days – such as Tuesday when he stood up in the Commons and accused the Government of "outsourcing torture" – when he wonders whether he would have been better off if he had fought for his beliefs from within the Shadow Cabinet rather than the political wilderness? For, frankly, most people cannot remember what all the fuss was about 12 months ago.



AS the summer of sport turns to next week's British Open, one point suddenly struck me as Hull MP Diana Johnson, a junior Schools Minister, sought to defend the Government's lamentable record over the teaching of foreign languages.

It is the eloquence of those overseas competitors from non-English speaking countries. Their command of English puts Britain to shame.



GIVE me a break. I walked into the Leeds Metropole Hotel on Thursday night to be greeted by piles of snazzy leaflets called "Christmas at The Met".

No thank you. Could they not wait until November – or even December 1? I thought we were just in the second week of July, or am I mistaken?



FINALLY, what does it say about Britain in 2009, and the mindset of officialdom, when rubbish collectors can refuse to empty a wheelie bin because it has been left three inches out of position by the householder?