MP Mary Glindon column: No one is above the law
The current Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, is doomed to be a barely remembered answer in future pub trivia quizzes about ministerial speeding.
She may be remembered as one of many symbols of the rapid decline of the governing party’s credibility, more a footnote than a chapter.
We saw far too much of this sense of entitlement – one rule for a few and another for the many – under Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.
But Rishi Sunak was supposed to be better than this. He promised integrity, professionalism, and accountability at all levels of government.
And then he went and did something stupid in appointing Braverman just days after she was sacked for leaking government information.
And now she’s back because she’s needed to shore up his party’s fragile unity.
What Braverman did wasn’t trivial, however. Speeding is a serious matter. It kills.
Those who get caught have to do the punishment to make sure they don’t do it again and to deter others.
It’s irritating. Insurance costs go up for a year or two. But we’re all equal before the law.
She was the Attorney General when she was caught speeding. We should expect much better of those who are supposed to uphold the principle of the rule of law.
Trying to do a private speed awareness course undermines its punitive and shaming aspect.
Her behaviour reveals a deeper disrespect for the little people. If she’d just accepted the punishment it would all now be over.
Instead, it illustrates double standards and decline. Minister must do better and we all deserve better than this circus.