Do you remember Neil Hamilton? I do. And his wife, Christine, self-described battle-axe? I remember her too, perhaps even more vividly. Neil was the MP for Tatton in Cheshire, one of the safest Conservative seats in the country, from 1983 to 1997, when he lost it over a ‘sleaze’ scandal, after allegations he had been bribed to ask questions in Parliament on behalf of a business tycoon.

I played a part in that political downfall, standing as an independent ‘anti-corruption’ MP and turning Hamilton’s majority of 22,000 into a majority against him of more than 11,000.

The people had spoken. I have never met anyone who regretted that vote.

In the course of the contest, Hamilton described me as ‘a nice enough man but totally unsuited to politics’. Hamilton changed his mind about the first, but he was probably right about it the second.

In my other life as a TV war reporter, I had encountered ambushes from Biafra to Bosnia – but nothing like the one on Knutsford Heath, when the Hamiltons confronted me (wearing my trademark white suit) before the Press demanding, among other things, whether I ‘accepted that he was innocent’.

All of this came back to my mind, almost like a dream, Wednesday this week when I saw the majority Conservative MPs block the disciplinary actions against Owen Paterson.

The move scandalised the Commons and the country – and one rebellious Tory MP called it ‘a dark day for democracy’.

Disgraced Conservative MP Neil Hamilton, left, who was caught in Tory sleaze allegations in the 1990s after accepting cash for questions, was beaten in the 1997 by former BBC journalist Martin Bell, right, who ran on an anti-sleaze platform

Former BBC journalist Martin Bell beat Neil Hamilton (left), a disgraced Conservative MP who was caught in Tory allegations of sleaze in the 1990s after accepting money for questions.

In my other life as a TV war reporter, I had encountered ambushes from Biafra to Bosnia – but nothing like the one on Knutsford Heath, when the Hamiltons confronted me (wearing my trademark white suit) before the Press demanding, among other things, whether I ‘accepted that he was innocent’

In my other life as a TV war reporter, I had encountered ambushes from Biafra to Bosnia – but nothing like the one on Knutsford Heath, when the Hamiltons confronted me (wearing my trademark white suit) before the Press demanding, among other things, whether I ‘accepted that he was innocent’

The Honourable member for North Shropshire was being suspended from Parliament for a period of 30 working days. He was charged with violating the rules of lobbying and taking parliamentary action for two companies that paid him hundreds of thousands of pounds. He had been through the due process. The initial charges were investigated by Kathryn Stone (Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards), and then they were examined by the all-party Committee on Standards.

I used to be a member on that committee. It had 11 members at that time, who were supposed to ignore their party affiliations and examine the complaints objectively. Some did it more than others.

Peter Bottomley (now Sir Peter and the Father to the House) was one of those who remained steadfastly neutral during the 1990s. Notably, he was one of the Tory rebels in Owen Paterson’s vote.

He had left the committee in 2003 because of the House’s ill-treatment of a previous Commissioner, Elizabeth Filkin, and was not going to change his practice now.

Kathryn Stone and Elizabeth Filkin had been much whispered against. More Labour MPs supported her campaign than Conservative MPs. One of them called her the ‘witchfinder-in-chief’. After three years of service, she was fired.

It wasn’t a matter of party politics back then. There were many Labour members than Conservatives, and the people under investigation at that time included prominent figures like Peter Mandelson (both Labour).

Imagine the pressures placed on the Commissioner and the 11 members of Parliament gathered around the horseshoe-shaped table. We resisted pressures even when we disagreed with one another. The House of Commons supported all of our decisions in every case. It was Elizabeth Filkin who lost her job –for doing it too well.

45 MPs signed an Early Day Motion expressing gratitude to her for her contributions, but only two were Tories. I cannot imagine what the Prime Minister was up to in the Paterson case – except perhaps for personal reasons – in making this a party-political issue. Even though the procedures are not satisfactory, they were agreed upon by cross-party consensus.

For any reform, the same would be necessary. A one-party ‘star chamber’ of Tory MPs – which is what was being proposed – would accomplish nothing but to bring the House into further disrepute.

This partisan arrangement was even considered by the Conservative Party is a sign that the party is not in control of its affairs and the leadership is out of control. Yesterday, it made a quick U-turn and Paterson was forced to resign. This was completely unnecessary.

Shamed former Tory MP resigned from Westminster yesterday after the government performed a humiliating u-turn over supporting him on Wednesday to protect him from a recall election

Yesterday, a disgraced Tory MP resigned from Westminster after the government made a humiliating U-turn in supporting him on Wednesday to keep him from a recall vote

Why did the MPs change their mind? My guess is that the MPs’ inboxes were growing hot with the outrage of their constituents. I remember standing up one day in Prime Minister’s Questions and observing that the appearance of wrong-doing can be as damaging to public trust as the wrong-doing itself.

The Commons was presented with the Paterson case. It contained elements of both. And public trust – a currency hard-earned and accumulated over years – can be blown away in 24 hours of media madness.

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle got it right when he said: ‘It’s not been a good period for the House. It’s been a very, very difficult time.’

As with the sleaze accusations of the 1990s this was not something MPs did, it was something they did.

Labour is also in serious trouble. Given the number of Tory rebels, Sir Keir Starmer had the numbers, with the other opposition parties, to have defeated the opportunistic amendment to block Paterson’s suspension.

During my four years of independent MP membership, I was able to be my own chief whip. Both whips seem to have miscalculated in this instance.

Boris Johnson’s government has so far enjoyed the good fortune of making its valleys of despair seem like broad sunlit uplands. It has ignored its slow response to last year’s pandemic and the dislocations caused by Brexit.

Boris Johnson’s government has so far enjoyed the good fortune of making its valleys of despair seem like broad sunlit uplands. It has brushed aside its slow response to the start of the pandemic last year, and the shortages and dislocations brought on by Brexit. But I am convinced that what happened on Wednesday afternoon is cutting through more directly to the voters

Boris Johnson’s government has so far enjoyed the good fortune of making its valleys of despair seem like broad sunlit uplands. It has ignored its slow response to last year’s pandemic and the dislocations caused by Brexit. But I am certain that Wednesday’s actions are a direct hit to the voters.

However, I believe that Wednesday’s events are more directly affecting the voters.

This reinforces the perception that many MPs, influenced by the 2009 expenses scandal, are driven more by their appetite than by principle and seek out the best in public life. Most of them are not – but that perception irreparably damages our democracy.

The people will decide the matter, as they always do, if and whenever the MP who broke the rules is up to re-election. Owen Paterson, battered by his past, resolved that issue by, understandably, deciding to resign.

With this in mind, I propose that the next MP of any party, regardless of party, should be removed from office to allow for Independent challenge. This works because there is a precedent.

In case you were wondering, I don’t plan to take off my white suit and meet a new political foe on Knutsford Heath or anywhere else.

At 83, I am an old man who is eligible to re-enlist in active service. I am certain, however, there should be plenty of volunteers.