The announcement yesterday that Nigel Evans, Deputy Speaker in the House of Commons, had been arrested for allegedly sexually assualting two people he had considered to be his friends is a disturbing new political drama being played out in Westminster - and I suspect over the shire tea cups as well: you see gay people just can't help themselves can they? They have to rape and assualt others - albeit low lifes such as themselves.
The arrest and charges do come at an interesting time:
The gay Equal Marriage Act is due for tabling and debate this session of Parliament, although it will not appear as a part of this week's Queen's Speech outlining the session's agenda. How convenient to have a controversy at the heart of Westminster if you are looking for a reason to side-line an issue that is likely to prove every bit as devisive in the Tory shires as in the House? "Now is not the time to be debating the rights of gay people when one of the highest democratically elected officers of the land is under investigation for crimes of a sexual nature. Let the dust settle so that we can discuss and consider the issue of equal marriage in a quieter moment ..."
That Nigel Evans is a Eurosceptic and consequently at odds with the mainstream Tory administration, just adds to the rich mix of political intrigue. Because the so-called public interest dictates that people accused of sexual misconduct can be named while their accusers remain anonymous, an apparently unblemished character is set for many weeks of scrutiny as well as the worst sort of tabloid innuendo. The truth will not formally emerge until the police have concluded their enquiries in June or thereabouts.
In cases such as this ALL parties should be anonymous until the matter has been resolved in court. I am strongly defensive of the notion that we are all innocent until proven guilty. Based upon his statement and what few facts have so far been shared, I don't suspect him to be guilty of anything other than a poor choice of friend and sexual partner.
