Bones McCoy wrote:It's been quite a week hasn't it.
Indeed. Some context from the Guardian:
According to the reference book British Political Facts by David Butler and Gareth Butler, not a single cabinet minister has resigned as a result of being charged with a serious criminal offence since modern records began in 1903.
A junior minister resigned in November 1958 after being charged with gross indecency. Lt Colonel Ian Harvey, who was the parliamentary under-Secretary of state at the Foreign Office, was charged with gross indecency after being found with a member of the Coldstream Guards in the bushes in St James's Park.
When apprehended, Harvey tried but failed to escape, and attempted to give a false name on arrest. Both men were charged with gross indecency and breach of the park regulations. When tried on 10 December, the indecency charge was dropped and both were fined £5.
Bloomberg has interviewed Philip Cowley, professor of politics at Nottingham University, who said: "I can't think of a comparable case in British politics where a cabinet minister is charged by the police for an offence for which they potentially face jail if convicted."