Car Tax U-Turn Imminent

There's an old adage in politics, just as in life, that when you're in a deep hole it's best to stop digging. This Government has struggled to comprehend that most fundamental principle of self-preservation. Of course, if you abruptly stop digging or start refilling the hole you run the risk of being branded indecisive, weak, ineffectual and incompetent.

Given their recent diabolical poll performances it comes as no surprise that the indecisive, weak, ineffectual and incompetent Labour Government has decided to make a u-turn on plans to retrospectively tax car owners.

Almost fifty Labour backbenchers, led by rebel Blyth Valley MP Ronnie Campbell, signed a Commons motion demanding the Chancellor had a rethink on the proposals, which would have seen Mondeo man paying up to £245 for past crimes against the environment.

Under the current system owners of the most polluting pre-2006 registered cars pay vehicle excise duty (VED) of £225 per year. Chancellor Alistair Darling's new plans would see those vehicles included on a new sliding scale of VED, rising to a maximum of £455 per year for the most polluting cars.

The Chancellor's plans would have left hundreds of thousands of old car owners with vehicles that were prohibitively expensive to run and almost worthless to sell. That didn't sit too well at all with the traditional Labour left.

Expect the retrospective element of the new VED to be dropped with the minimal of fuss in the pre-Budget report.

After an embarrassing series of blunders at the Treasury and HMRC it can't be too long before Darling's position becomes untenable. I'd give him a month.

Ladder Fall Caretaker Wins Damages

A school caretaker has won his claim for damages after he accidentally fell from a stepladder at work.

Seventy-three-year-old Anthony Gower-Smith was working as caretaker of Awbridge Primary School in Hampshire, when he fell from the 6-foot stepladder. He had been working on a wall display.

Mr Gower-Smith suffered a fractured skull, fractured cheek bone and kidney damage in the fall, which required lengthy hospital treatment to put right.

He claimed that his employers, Hampshire County Council, were negligent in failing to show him how to use the stepladder in a safe manner. In their robust defence the County Council cited that Mr Gower-Smith had signed a form to confirm he had received ladder training at the start of his employment. Mr Gower-Smith agreed that he had signed the form, but only did so to keep his employer happy.

Amazingly Mr Gower-Smith has actually won his case.

So that's a good lesson to everyone - get a job you're probably too infirm to do, undertake safety training, sign anything the employer asks you to and then plead social compliance and receive compensation when it all goes wrong.

Labour Trounced into Fifth Place at Henley By-Election

The Labour Party came a humiliating fifth place in yesterday's Henley by-election.

Just as expected the Conservatives were victorious with a very respectable 57% share of the vote - an improvement on the 54% share of the vote they managed last time.

Labour candidate Richard McKenzie managed a miserly 3% support. What could possibly be worse than scratching together only 3% of the vote? Being beaten by the Green Party and British National Party into fifth place and losing your deposit.

It was a hammering of epic proportions, however the Government try to butter up the result. It is damning endictment of the Government's performance that the people of Henley feel such venom towards them that they'd rather support the BNP.

The full result was as follows:

• John Howell - Conservatives, 19,796 (56.95%)
• Stephen Kearney - Liberal Democrats, 9,680 (3.80%)
• Timothy Rait - British National Party, 1,243 (3.58%)
• Richard McKenzie - Labour, 1,066 (3.07%)
• Chris Adams, UK Independence Party, 843 (2.43%)
• Bananaman Owen - Monster Raving Loony Party, 242 (0.70%)
• Derek Allpass - English Democrats, 157 (0.45%)
• Amanda Harrington - Miss Great Britain Party, 128 (0.37%)
• Dick Rodgers - The Common Good, 121 (0.35%)
• Louise Cole - Miss Great Britain Party, 91 (0.26%)
• Harry Bear - The Fur Play Party, 73 (0.21%)

The sheer magnitude of the defeat will come as a bitter blow to Gordon Brown, who today celebrates his first anniversary as Prime Minister.

Hope you're having a nice day Mr Brown!

Henley By-Election Day

Did I mention that today was the Henley by-election?

No, I didn't think I did. For understandable reason too - the result is almost an inevitability. Henley is just one of those places where the people bleed blue blood. The main opposition in Henley is the Liberal Democrats. Labour, who attract miserly support even when they're riding high nationally, are wasting their time by even getting out of bed!

Former MP, now Mayor of London, Boris Johnson was a very popular figure in the constituency. Boris took almost 54% of the vote last time around, which was an improvement of 7.4% on the time before that.

Prior to Boris's tenure it was Michael Heseltine's stomping ground. During Heseltine's twenty-five year reign he consistently polled more than 50% of the vote - even managing a 60% share in the Thatcher wonder years of the 1980s.

The Conservative candidate in today's by-election is local man Dr John Howell. John is well known around Oxfordshire for his roles on the County Council, Warborough Parish Council and as a musician and environmental campaigner. He was awarded the OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 2000.

I'll report the result of today's vote when it's known. Don't expect too many surprises!

Woefully Inadequate

No, I'm not referring to Gordon Brown's performance at Prime Minister's Questions today, but rather to the Independent Police Complaints Commission's (IPCC) damning appraisal of the loss of 25 million child benefit records.

Compact discs containing the data were lost when a junior official at the Child Benefit Centre in Washington posted them to the National Audit Office (NAO) in Central London using the insecure internal mail system.

The situation was inflamed when the loss wasn't reported for several weeks. Worse still Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) had ignored the NAO's request to filter identifying features from the data.

The IPCC's 59 page report didn't spare any punches as it branded data handling practices at HMRC "far from what they should have been".

The report continued: "Staff found themselves working on a day-to-day basis without adequate support, training or guidance about how to handle sensitive personal data appropriately.

"The IPCC uncovered failures in institutional practices and procedures concerning the handling of data. It revealed the absence of a coherent strategy for mass data handling and, generally speaking, practices and procedures were less than effective."

Criticism doesn't come much more caustic than that.

Think on Mr Darling.

Council Strike Looming

Council workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have voted in favour of industrial action in a dispute over pay.

General secretary of Unison, Dave Prentice, said that his members were: "Fed up and angry they are expected to accept pay cut after pay cut while bread and butter prices go through the roof.

"Most of them are low-paid workers, who are hit hardest by food and fuel price hikes, and they see the unfairness of boardroom bonanzas and big City bonuses."

According to the union there are some 250,000 council workers earning less than £6.50 an hour. They are seeking a 6% pay rise or an extra 50 pence per hour, whichever is greater.

The Government is loathe to cave in to public sector pay demands as it frantically battles to control the rate of inflation.

The Consumer Price Index, the Government's preferred measure of the cost of living, currently stands at 3.3% - well above the Government's 2% target. The Retail Price Index, of more relevance to the ordinary person on the street, stands at 4.3% with no sign of subsiding.

Food inflation is around 20%, the price of fuel is at its highest in more than 30 years and an extra 10,000 mortgagors a month are entering negative equity.

The council workers have their initial 48 hour walk out pencilled in for 16 - 17 July.

Today's decision follows widespread discontent with public sector pay failing to keep pace with the cost of living. Organisations representing teachers, medical workers, the police, prison officers, the armed forces and civil servants have all expressed disdain at their effective pay freezes or cuts.

I'll echo a question that the Prime Minister evaded during PMQs last week - why is it that Labour Governments always end with people on strike?

Tsvangirai Withdraws from Zimbabwean Presidential Race

Breaking news that Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has withdrawn from the country's presidential run-off on 27 June.

It's amazing that Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), has lasted this long with his supporters receiving daily beatings and persecution by despotic Robert Mugabe's incumbent Zanu-PF government.

Yet again Mugabe's tyrannical regime has snatched democracy from under the noses of the Zimbabwean people.

In what should be a vibrant economy, with plentiful natural resources, the people are forced to scratch around for food in the dirt and face crippling inflation on everyday necessities. Vast swathes of agricultural land lie barren and powder dry and the majority of people die well short of their fortieth birthday.

Earlier this year Mugabe conned his way into a close second place by resurrecting phantom voters from the grave. The MDC winning margin was slight enough to force the presidential run-off later this month.

Back in March's elections Mugabe placed policemen in polling stations to ensure that people made their mark in the Zanu-PF box. He threatened families with starvation and the mob if they supported the MDC.

How can the west sit idly by and watch all this happen?

Pretty on the Outside

Celebrity model and thug Naomi Campbell has today been convicted of assault, disorderly conduct and threatening behaviour.

The offences relate to her violent outburst on a British Airways aircraft, following the announcement that some of her luggage had gone astray. The incident occurred a few days after the chaotic opening of Heathrow Terminal 5.

The aircraft's captain, Miles Sutherland, took the unusual decision of leaving the flight deck to make a personal apology to the stroppy supermodel. He received a barrage of abuse for his trouble, with Campbell shouting: "They have lost my fucking bags. Get me another flight, get the press, get me my lawyer."

When Mr Sutherland outlined Campbell's options she retorted: "How dare you tell me what my options are? You are not leaving until you find my fucking bags."

With Campbell's temper and language showing no sign of subsiding she was asked to leave the aircraft.

When Campbell refused to leave voluntarily the police were called to eject her. Her parting shot to Mr Sutherland was to say: "You are a racist. You wouldn’t be doing this if I was white."

Campbell kicked out as she was led from the heavily delayed Los Angeles flight. She also spat at the police while berating them: "It is because I am a black woman. You are all racists. I am going to sue you."

Campbell pleaded guilty to all six charges at Uxbridge Magistrates' Court. In light of the unbelievable fact she has no previous UK convictions she was fined £2,945 and sentenced to 200 hours of community service.

Apparently the sentence was nothing to do with her being black. It was more to do with the fact that's she's an obnoxious little bitch with scant regard for the law.

Death by Misadventure Verdict on Canoe Girl

Her Majesty's Coroner for Powys, Mr Peter Maddox, has returned a verdict of death by misadventure on canoe accident victim Billie Clayton.

Nine-year-old Billie had been out canoeing on the River Wye with her father Ian, twin brother Edward and mother Heather when tragedy struck back in April 2006.

After taking a wrong turn their canoe capsized in fast-flowing rapids, throwing the children clear and into the water. Mr Clayton, a regional television presenter with ITV, frantically battled against the current to try and rescue the children. Sadly his efforts were in vain and Billie was swept to her death.

It's a sad story and unsurprisingly Mr Clayton is looking for somewhere to vent his frustration. He has decided to target his anger at the canoe hire company, Hay Canoes, who provided the family with their equipment that ill-fated day.

Speaking after the inquest Mr Clayton said: "My beautiful daughter Billie fell through a hole in the health and safety law and drowned.

"My partner Heather, my son Edward and myself also fell into that hole as well but somehow we managed to claw our way out from the aftermath to be told things it was difficult to take in and resolve."

He added: "Our Billie will never know that the canoe hire industry is a shambolic mess of a business. She will never know it is a stupidly unregulated thing.

"Our hope is that no other parents will stand outside a coroner’s court having to say these words."

It is sad indeed that Billie was killed that day, but I'm not alone in thinking that the Clayton family should recognise their part in the day's tragic events. It was they who decided to venture onto the water; it was they who steered the canoe on its perilous path; and it was they who considered they had sufficient knowledge to control the vessel.

If I hire a car I expect the hire company to provide me with something legal and roadworthy. That's all their obliged to do and I can't expect any more from them then that - after all, they are a car hire company and not a driving school or a taxi firm.

The onus is on me to be able to drive it in a safe and proficient manner and navigate from point A to point B. If I crash it then I am accountable for my misfortune, but I wouldn't be hiring it in the first place if I was unfamiliar with how it worked.

Common sense tells me that if I don't know how to drive a car I either walk or take the bus.

Labour Bottles Haltemprice and Howden By-Election

The Labour Party confirmed today that they will not be fielding a candidate at the Haltemprice and Howden by-election on 10th July 2008.

The by-election was forced when Conservative stalwart and former MP David Davis resigned from Parliament in protest at the incumbent Labour Government's constant erosion of civil liberties.

You may remember that David gave quite an impassioned speech on the issue when he announced his resignation last week. His sincere delivery and yesterday's confirmation that he will never again stand for leadership of the Party leave little doubt in my mind that he believes wholeheartedly in his cause. So he should.

I am disappointed that Labour has shown contempt to the voters of Haltemprice and Howden by depriving them of a truly democratic choice come polling day. Whatever your political persuasion there is no denying that David's campaign has struck a chord with vast swathes of ordinary British folk. For understandable reasons - not least their constant harvesting and mismanagement of personal data - the Government would rather these matters were sheltered from public debate.

I would encourage the voters of David's constituency to turn out in overwhelming force to salvage what little impact the by-election still has. You have a genuine candidate in David Davis.

Irish 'No' Vote

The good people of Ireland have rejected the Treaty of Lisbon.

In last Thursday's referendum 53.4% of those turning out rejected the idea of Ireland subscribing to the Treaty, which would see member states forfeiting their powers in a swathe of domestic policy areas.

I've been away this all weekend hence the delay in this commentary.

The way European Union works if just one of the 27 member states rejects the Treaty it can not become law. Ireland's response is therefore a bitter blow to the EU and their ambitions to push towards a single European super state.

At least it should be.

In characteristic EU fashion - and exactly the reason why the UK should also be rejecting the Treaty - some of the big players are already hatching plans to press on without Irish backing. Two of the usual suspects, France and Germany, stand aghast at the democratic word of the Irish electorate.

Plans are afoot to hold a second referendum in Ireland in the hope of securing a pro-Euro outcome. Put another way: The people have spoken but since we don't like what they're saying we'll keep on asking them until we wear them into submission.

Another idea being mooted is to cast Ireland adrift and continue ratifying the Treaty without them. Put another way: All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.

Those last two paragraphs highlight succinctly the corruption and egotism of the EU machine.

It sticks in my throat that the UK obediently licks the boots of the EU when other nations just ignore the bits they don't like.

Back in 2005 then Prime Minister Tony Blair surrendered £1 billion of the UK's CAP rebate. That rebate took Margaret Thatcher's Conservatives a lot of effort to secure, but Blair just keeled over in a vain attempt to smooth his path to European glory.

Spanish and French fishermen sail around British waters showing total disregard for their quotas, while the British fishing fleet is left destitute and forced to throw back millions of tons of dead fish. In the wake of the UK's last BSE outbreak France stuck two fingers up at the EU by illegally refusing to lift bans on British beef imports.

Thanks to the European Human Rights Act, which we were compelled to adopt on the UK statute books, we're in the ludicrous position where convicted prisoners receive thousands of pounds in compensation if their cell toilet stops working and teachers receive damages if their pupils hurt their feelings. It's because of the EU that householders are unable to defend their homes for fear of litigation.

The United Kingdom must not surrender the last few domestic powers it has by subscribing to this farce of a Treaty. It's not too late for the Labour Government to make good their pledge to let the people decide.

David Davis - Your Opinions

A quick poll to see what my readers think about David Davis' decision to resign earlier today. The poll options are self-explanatory and I've tried to make the wording as neutral as possible! The poll options appear in random order each time the page is refreshed.

Please cast your vote now.

Opinion Polls & Market Research

David Davis Resignation Statement

Full text of David Davis' resignation statement:

"The name of my constituency is Haltemprice and Howden. Haltemprice is derived from the medieval proverb meaning 'noble endeavour'. Up until yesterday I took the view that what we did in the House of Commons representing our constituents was a noble endeavour because for centuries our forebears defended the freedoms of the British people – or we did, up until yesterday.

"This Sunday is the anniversary of the Magna Carta, the document that guarantees that most fundamental of British freedoms, habeas corpus, the right not to be imprisoned by the state without charge or reason. Yesterday this House decided to allow the state to lock up potentially innocent citizens for up to six weeks without charge.

"The counter terrorism bill will in all probability be rejected by the House of Lords very firmly. What should they be there for if not to defend the Magna Carta. But because the impetus behind this is essentially political not security the government will be tempted to use the Parliament Act to overrule the Lords. It has no democratic mandate to do this since 42 days was not in the manifesto. Its legal basis is uncertain to say the least. But purely for political reasons this government's going to do that.

"In truth 42 days is just one, perhaps the most salient example, of the insidious, surreptitious and relentless erosion of fundamental British freedoms.

"We will have shortly the most intrusive identity card system in the world. A CCTV camera for every 14 citizens, a DNA database bigger than any dictatorship has, with thousands of innocent children and a million innocent citizens on it. We've witnessed an assault on jury trials, that bulwark against bad law and its arbitrary abuse by the state, shortcuts for our justice system that make our justice system neither firm nor fair, and the creation of a database state, opening up our private lives to the prying eyes of official snoopers and exposing our personal data to careless civil servants and criminal hackers.

"The state has security powers to clamp down on peaceful protests and so-called hate laws which stifle debate, while those who serve violence get off scot-free. This cannot go on, it must be stopped and for that reason today I feel it is incumbent on me to take a stand.

"I will be resigning my membership of this House and I intend to force a by-election in Haltemprice and Howden. I will not fight it on the government's general record; there is no point repeating Crewe and Nantwich. I will fight it on my personal record. I am just a piece in this great chess game. I will fight it. I will argue this by-election against the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this government. That may mean I have made my last speech to the House, possible. And of course that would be a cause of deep regret to me. But at least my electorate and the nation as a whole would have had the opportunity to debate and consider one of the most fundamental issues of our day. The ever-intrusive power of the state into our lives, the loss of privacy, the loss of freedom If they do send me back here, it will be with a single, simple message. That the monstrosity of a law that we passed yesterday will not stand."

David Davis Calls Time

The Rt. Hon. David Davis MP has just announced his intention to resign as MP for Haltemprice and Howden Parliamentary constituency.

David is an exceptionally talented and principled Conservative politician. Over his twenty year Parliamentary career he has held several high profile roles in both Government and Opposition. David is currently the Shadow Home Secretary. He is well respected by Party members and constituents alike for his sincerity and direct talking.

His resignation statement, which I will publish here when the text is available, focuses on his disillusionment with the nanny state and erosion of civil liberties. He cited yesterday's terror vote, the national DNA database and identity cards as just some of the ways that this Government are strangling the civil liberties of British people.

As far as I'm concerned yesterday's result and all the dodgy deals that were done to sway it the Government's way has strong parallels to the Enabling Act of the 1930's Reichstag.

He intends to stand for re-election campaigning on the issues of preserving civil liberties and loosening the grip of the Big Brother state. I have written on numerous occasions how this Government has fundamentally abused the democratic trust of the nation by it's cavalier approach to data harvesting and protection.

A truly noble gesture. Conservatives everywhere are with you David.

Sudoku answer:

Sudoku Halts Drugs Trial

An Australian drugs trial had to be abandoned when the judge discovered that several members of the jury had been playing Sudoku during court time.

Judge Peter Zahra was forced to abort proceedings when the forewoman of the jury admitted that five of the jurors, including her, had routinely played the game to stave off boredom.

She told Australian Associated Press: "Some of the evidence is rather drawn out and I find it difficult to maintain my attention the whole time and that (the puzzle) doesn't distract me too much from proceedings."

The Sudoku playing jurors were rumbled when an eagle-eyed court official noticed them making notes vertically down the page, instead of the customary left to right.

The three-month trial, in which more than 100 witnesses had given evidence, cost the Australian taxpayer in excess of A$1m by the time it was abandoned yesterday.

The juror's will not receive any punishment for wasting the court's time. A new jury will be sworn in for a retrial.

Officials had put the juror's copious note making down to diligence.

Today's Sudoku challenge:


I shall publish the answer at the end of my next post.

Police Lose High Court Battle

The High Court has rejected the Police Federation's case to force the Government into implementing a 2.5% pay rise in full.

Independent pay review body, the Police Arbitration Tribunal, had recommended that every police officer in England, Wales and Northern Ireland receive a pay rise of 2.5%. Much to their anger the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, decided not to backdate the pay award to the date of the arbitration decision meaning it was only worth 1.9% in real terms.

With the Government's chosen indicator of inflation, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), currently standing somewhere around 3% it's not difficult to see the police's argument. The CPI is actually a deceptively generous measure - the Retail Price Index (RPI), based on the price of household goods in the average shopping basket, is more relevant to most ordinary people. The RPI is somewhere around 4.2%.

Police officers in Scotland received their pay increase promptly and in full.

The Police Federation is now likely to stage some sort of industrial action, although an outright strike is unlawful.

42-Day Terror Limit

Next week the Government faces one of its toughest tests yet as MPs get to vote on the proposed 42-day detention limit for terror suspects.

Rumour has it that dozens of backbench Labour MPs are preparing to vote against their own Government, in addition to widespread opposition to the proposals among Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs.

If the Government win the vote on its controversial Counter Terrorism Bill it will pave the way for the police to detain terror suspects for up to 42-days without charge. Current legislation allows 28-days detention without charge.

Readers may be surprised to learn that I oppose the 42-day limit.

My reasons for this are numerous, but for the sake of brevity I shall condense them down to three main areas of concern.

Firstly, the current 28-day limit is generous enough. Since the 28-day limit was enacted in late 2005 there has not once been the need for the police to hold a suspect for that length of time without charge. It could reasonably be argued that if the police anticipate it is going to take weeks of effort to unearth compelling evidence against a terror suspect, then they shouldn't actually be arresting them in the first case.

Secondly, as much as I hate terrorists and criminals in general, I have serious reservations about erasing up to 42-days of some one's life by detaining them on evidence so flimsy that it can't be used to charge them, let alone guarantee any sort of conviction.

Finally, such archaic legislation could undoubtedly be abused by the authorities. That sort of thing does happen - even here in a supposedly democratic nation like the UK. Only last month it emerged that Poole Borough Council had misused anti-terror surveillance powers enshrined in the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act to spy on a family applying for a nursery place.

Those are just three of the reasons why 42-days is an unacceptably long period of detention without charge. Sure the Government will sugarcoat their proposals and harp on about how they're protecting the public from terrorism but it's a fallacy.

If these proposals survive the scrutiny of Parliament next week then we really are sliding down a slippery slope towards communist China.

CGS Calls for Troop Pay Rise

Head of the British Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, has piled yet more pressure on the Government by calling for a pay rise for soldiers.

In an interview with The Sun newspaper Sir Richard, Chief of the General Staff (CGS), complained that the increased operational burden on the Armed Forces was not being recognised financially.

He told The Sun: "I'd like to see service pay go up above inflation for the next couple of years and keep going up if this level of commitment continues."

"You look to see how much a traffic warden is paid and compare that against what a private soldier gets paid.

"If you compare a police constable on overtime, I think you will find that an individual serviceman gets quite a lot less."

General Dannatt's refreshingly candid comments about the Government's lacklustre support of our Armed Forces have won him widespread acclaim from soldiers on the ground. In the past he has been critical of service accommodation, military overstretch and inadequate equipment.

Sir Richard added: "To make sure that we have armed services populated by motivated and well-trained people we have got to look after their individual needs well enough.

"That means things like housing, pay, medical provision and general welfare facilities have got to be good. That's where I would like to see additional resources spent. To an extent that is happening but I would like to see it happening faster."

Last year members of the Armed Forces received a 2.6% pay award in keeping with the Government's inflation target.

Give Up Hillary

We were on our routine pilgrimage to the coast at the weekend when we caught sight of a lame seagull at the side of the road. It was backed up against a garden wall, blood dripping from its beak and looking in a rather sorry state. I think it had been clipped by a car (poor car).

The kindest thing would have been to put the poor creature out of its misery by wrapping a brick around its head or wringing its neck.

The same can be said of Hillary Clinton. She's backed against a wall, wounded by Barack Obama's surge in the Democratic primaries. She may, according to her, have won the popular vote but it's the sheer weight of Democratic delegates that counts. She's currently lagging about 200 votes behind Obama and barring a statistical miracle she's unlikely to achieve anything more than prolonging her humiliating.

The gracious thing would be to throw in the towel and rally her supporters behind Obama. The Democrats are going to have enough of a challenge defeating Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain without enduring the ideological divides exhibited by our own Labour Government.

Give it up Hillary.

Tube Booze Chaos

Trouble flared yesterday evening as thousands of revellers converged on London's transport system to enjoy a final drink before the network wide ban on alcohol came into force.

The evening's activities, dubbed "The Last Round on the Underground", were focused on the Circle line and had been widely advertised via web social networking sites.

The party started in good spirits but a steady flow of alcohol ensured that it quickly degenerated into a rampage with partygoers becoming drunk, violent, vomiting and causing criminal damage.

By the end of the evening seven members of London Underground staff and two police officers had been assaulted and there had been 17 arrests. Several Tube trains and a police vehicle were also damaged in the chaos.

The ban was announced shortly after London's Mayor Boris Johnson took office, with the intention of making public transport a safer and more enjoyable environment for all.

Last night's antics only go to reinforce Boris's concerns about drink related crime and disorder. Boris's firm stance should ensure there are no repeat performances.