Home truths

Morley’s fraud, which involved claiming more than £30,000 in bogus mortgage payments, was more than just a “tragic end to a lifetime of public service”, as his barrister would have us believe. It was, in fact, a sustained plot to pinch large sums of money from taxpayers who were already coughing up for his salary, pension contributions, office and home costs.

It was carried out not by someone who was young and impressionable but by a former Minister who had been in the House of Commons for more than 20 years and who then invented a cock-and-bull story to cover his tracks. Indeed, the rest of the world is still no clearer why Morley felt it necessary to top-up his sizeable income with this con. He has offered no explanation and no apology for his misconduct and has brought Parliament and his party into disrepute. As such, his sentencing was rightly motivated by punishment and the need to provide a deterrence.

The conviction of former Barnsley MP Eric Illsley, and his absurd claim to have been a “scapegoat” when he was released from prison a week ago, shows that many members of the political class remain entirely detached from reality. If convicted MPs feel resentful of the way they have been treated, however, there is still time to do something about it. They could serve their sentences quietly and then, on their return to freedom, devote themselves to unpaid good works in their community. They won’t earn any sympathy but they could, finally, regain a little bit of respect.