Poor fellow. He suffers from files. How Peter Hain, who was forced to resign as Work and Pensions Secretary yesterday, must wish he had the same obsession with detail that enabled his political hero, the late Aneurin Bevan, to put down a rival so crushingly. Mr Hain blamed poor administration for his failure to declare clearly and promptly £103,000 in donations to his Labour Party deputy leadership campaign. But it appears to be a more complicated matter than mere assiduous record-keeping. Had it been so straightforward, the Electoral Commission, which had been investigating the donations, probably would not have decided yesterday to refer the matter to the police.
Poor fellow. He suffers from files. How Peter Hain, who was forced to resign as Work and Pensions Secretary yesterday, must wish he had the same obsession with detail that enabled his political hero, the late Aneurin Bevan, to put down a rival so crushingly.
