Did mps really ridicule paul maynard?
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MPs on the Conservative side used to turn towards Jack Ashley, the deaf Labour MP, so he could lip-read more easily. If a member returned after a heart attack or other serious illness his
entry was greeted with “hear! hear!” from all parties. People always helped David Blunkett and Anne Begg (one blind, the other in a wheelchair) so who on earth mocks cerebral palsy in the
Commons chamber? There are explanations: Paul Maynard may have mistaken the intentions of Opposition MPs or they may not have realised what was causing his hesitations. I fear, however, he
was only too right and the dumbing down of Parliament and the relentless engineering of its composition has resulted in a decline in taste and decency, once seen as inseparable from
membership of either House. No old-style trade unionist or ranting comrade would have mocked a member of another party on account of a physical affliction. What sort of people have they got
there now?