Can we talk...corruption?

Meet Justin Tomlinson, a former Tory junior minister who has been suspended from the House of Commons for releasing the report on an enquiry called Regulating Consumer Credit to a Wonga employee in 2013. The Wonga employee wrote back to him commenting on the findings and suggesting changes to the report. This is referred to as 'holding the house in contempt' and according to the house 'constituted substantial interference' in the work of parliament. 

Like me, you're probably shocked and for a few reasons:

Firstly, this incident has never been mentioned in any news bulletin between 2013 and now. 

Secondly, no explanation has been forthcoming of the relationship between Mr Tomlinson and Wonga. Why would an MP consult an employee of Wonga (consultation is what it looks like to me) about a sensitive issue like the regulation of consumer credit? 

Thirdly, this MP has been suspended from the commons for two days. Yep, two days. I don't know if his suspension involves a loss of wages or even a loss of privileges, such as access to the commons bars and restaurants. What do you think?

It seems it all started way back in the 70s with John Profumo (Tory secretary of state for war) who got in tow with a prostitute who was already sharing a bed with the Soviet military attache in London. Later, Tory MPs were accused of asking questions in parliament in return for money from private companies. And there was a Labour MP who got into financial difficulties and faked his death. And later Labour MPs lowered themselves so far as to fiddle their expenses. 

It seems the Tories tend to get caught over sex, while with Labour it's more likely to be money. 

I  prefer to call it all corruption. 

There was a time when corruption was the domaine of foreigners. So we had Giscard d'Estaing and the African dictator Bokassa who bribed him with diamonds in the 70s. Two diamonds to be exact. And there's Mugabe. We'll believe almost anything of Mugabe, it seems. And what about those people in FIFA who took money in exchange for sending the World Cup to Qatar? Not to mention the very shady goings on over the Olympics in Brazil. All backed up by politicians. 

I was brought up to believe that politicians were honourable people who acted in the public interest.

I accept that there is bound to be the odd rotten egg among them. What I can't accept is the casual approach politicians take to policing what some of their number get up to.