Pond Life

Nicola Sturgeon’s exile in England was funny enough before you realised that arrest warrants issued on either side of the Border were directly enforceable on the other side. But until that day came, then how will Sturgeon be filling up her time? Will she be frequenting Kenwood Ladies’ Pond at Hampstead Heath?

The City of London Corporation must realise that its extension of bathing rights there to Kenwood Gentlemen will be ruled illegal, so it is notable that it is the body picking this fight, and that this is the fight that it is picking. Even if EDM 240, sponsored entirely by women, were ever to make it to a vote, were to be passed, and were indeed to cause “the draft Code of Practice for Services, public functions and associations, a copy of which was laid before this House on 21 May, [to] be disapproved”, then the Supreme Court ruling would remain the law.

Something has to, I suppose. Does the offence of perverting the course of justice no longer exist? No one from Vickrum Digwa’s family has been charged with it, while Paul Quinn kept Andrew Malkinson in prison for years on end, yet he seems not to have been charged with anything specific to that, with the effect that his sentence is lighter than Malkinson’s was. If Digwa’s is to be revisited for possible undue leniency, then what about this? Would there have to be a riot?

The family of Henry Nowak has pointedly not met either Reform UK or Restore Britain, since Nigel Farage has not condemned the violence that he has incited for the second time, evading arrest only because the Police feared that cities would burn if he were brought in, and nor has Rupert Lowe, despite his longstanding ties to Southampton. He would of course have deported Nowak to Poland, and he still would deport Mark Nowak. Heaven knows what his supporters would do to Ben Habib or Calvin Robinson. And while there is still plenty of time, although Restore looks set to come third at Makerfield, there is no sign that it will take more votes than the margin of victory.

Rather a lot of credibility now hangs in the balance at Makerfield. If Restore did make the difference, then the BBC would look pretty silly for having kept it off Question Time. If Andy Burnham did not win, then he would never be back in Parliament, nor could he expect to be taken seriously if he presented himself for re-election as Mayor. And if Reform did not win, having already failed to win Gorton and Denton, then what would be the point of it? Thank goodness for the Official Monster Raving Loony Party. First David Owen, and now Habib, have had to wind up their parties after having taken fewer votes than that at a by-election. Will there be any more this time? At any rate, that amounts to a specific role within the unwritten Constitution.