As a fellow Neil, I feel some sympathy for Neil Parish, the Tory MP for Tiverton and Honiton, who stands accused of “watching pornography in the Commons chamber.” I do not yet know the facts of the case. But Mr Parish, in my view, is being treated unjustly. Whether or not he is guilty as charged.
Myself, I don’t feel any desire to watch pornography, but a chacun son goût. Where is the evidence that Mr Parish watching pornography (if he did) harmed anyone? A far better accusation against Mr Parish would have been that, by failing to listen to the debate, he had failed to represent his constituents. He had failed to do what he was paid for.
And yet, we see Neil Parish suspended from the Tory party, without any proof that he is guilty. While Boris Johnson, having broken a law he himself made, is still prime minister!