Cunning stunts

 I must admit to some admiration for the demonstrators who draped the prime minister's mansion in black last Thursday. It was cheeky and attended with some danger.  Of course, it was an intrusion on private property, taking advantage of the family's absence in California, taking in Disneyland and Star Wars exhibits. One should not condone such acts. No doubt Rishi Sunak will ensure there is year-round security in future. 

Another stunt which received rather less attention was the SNP's distribution of mugs mimicking Labour ads with the added slogan "controls on family sizes - what's the point of Labour?" The leader of the party at Westminster, Stephen Flynn, reinforced the point by adding a note on Commons stationery, reading: "The Labour Party has a new range of mugs in production. They're made in China - just like Keir Starmer's latest policy." It is the latter touch which has drawn the wrath of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. Stationery is provided free for members' use but only for constituency correspondence, not for political campaigning. I am sure Flynn was well aware of this and would be among the first to complain if a political opponent misused taxpayers' provision in this way. One suspects that he transgressed deliberately in order to achieve more publicity for his stunt.