Yesterday Guido pondered why there was no retribution for Peers who are convicted criminals and that it’s  just unpopular Knights that get shredded. Well it seems to have got the ball rolling…

Tory MP Matthew Hancock tells the FT: “I don’t see why the rules for peers should be entirely different to the rules for MPs”. As Jim Pickard points out, legislation has already passed that, with an amendment or two, could make this happen. The 1917 Deprivation of Titles Act was used to strip Peers who supported Germany in WWI…

If it is so easy to strip honours in retribution, then how come convicted criminals and sleazy cash-takers still sit on the red benches? Fred Goodwin has never been convicted of a crime but has the full book thrown at him, yet ex-convicts can return to the trough when they are out of prison.  Once again our lawmakers put themselves above the law…

No this isn’t about his fraudulent expense claims, this is about the whoppers MacShane tells on Twitter:

Without even checking the records, Guido recalls that the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 were officially opened by President Ronald Reagan and saw him re-elected in November 1984. More recently the Canadian Conservative government of Steven Harper won a full majority of votes in 2011, after the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, following successive minority and coalition governments in the previous years.

Last week MacShane made the bizarre claim that €uro had got stronger against the “Osborne pound” which was “still weakest currency in world as oil prices rise”. The pound is in fact up 5% against the crisis-ridden €uro over the last three months.

UPDATE: Courtesy of William Pitt in the comments below:

1984 – Los Angeles (Reagan reelected in 1984)
1988 – Seoul (Roh Tae-woo returned in 1992)
1992 – Barcelona (Marquez returned as PM 1993)
1996 – Atlanta (Clinton reelected 1996)
2000 – Sydney (Howard reelected 2001)
2004 – Athens (Karamanlis reelected 2007)
2008 – China (no brainer)

Take two. This time with the final piece of evidence. Don’t worry about doing your red boxes this weekend Chris…

Jack Dromey, aka Mrs Harman, aka Unites’ man on the inside, will be forced to issue an apology to the House for failing to declare he was still in the pay of the union when he became an MP. While many Labour MPs benefit from union cash, such a formal arrangement was enough for John Lyon to gently toss an abridged version of the book at Dromey’s feet. Imagine if it had been any other form of lobbyist giving secret payments of £57,000 to an MP…

UPDATE: John Lyons said the matter was serious but has given leniency due to Dromey being “a new an inexperienced MP”. He’s been political operator for decades. He knew what he was doing…

Vince Cable once attacked the “pin-striped Scargills” of banking, adding for good measure that the LibDems didn’t rely on friends in the City for funding. No, not any more.

The biggest donor in the history of the Liberal Democrat Party was one pin-striped Michael Brown, who gave them £2.4 million for a front-row seat sipping champagne next to Charlie Kennedy.  He turned out to be a pin-striped thief and was charged with money laundering, fraud and theft before he went on the run.  He has been arrested in the Dominican Republic…

Today’s Times front-page should certainly make interesting reading for the the Director of Public Prosecutions.

No rush…

An early Chris-tmas pressie.

Flashback:

Chris Huhne is still trying to kid himself that he wouldn’t lose his seat at the cabinet table if he was charged for his speeding offences:

The latest delay is due to a vital piece of evidence that is currently in the possession of the Sunday Times. PA’s James Tapsfield does not reckon anything will be resolved before Christmas. Guido has already asked Santa for the correct result though, just in case…

Video via Liar Politicians

Lord Justice Leveson just announced that he will be calling on Piers Morgan to give evidence and explain his comments on phonehacking. Breaking…

UPDATE: Well it seems Leveson read our letter outlining the case against Morgan.

Keir Stammer the Director of Public Prosecutions told Radio Five this morning:

“We are very close to a decision. There is one remaining issue which is that we are seeking some material which is held by a national newspaper. That is the only thing we are waiting for now … I understand why people think it is taking a lot of time but the way in which we get material from journalists is an important principle, quite separate from the Chris Huhne case.”

Soon Huhnie my boy. Soon.

Via Andrew Sparrow