Why has Tom Brake taken the unusual step of praising his “apprentice” by name in the Commons? Last month the LibDem MP told the House he “should like to start by paying tribute to my apprentice, Callum Morton”. What he didn’t mention is that Morton is also one of the councillors who signed off on a very fishy million pound discount for a company of which Brake is a trustee. Perhaps Morton deserved the tribute for his other hard work down in Carshalton? 

Or not – Morton managed just a 53% attendance record for the last year, which is the poorest of any local councillor including those with serious illness. Still, kind of an MP to namecheck the man who rubber-stamped a million pound deal for a company of which he is a trustee…