Matilda Told Such Dreadful Lies!

Well, on this occasion it was not Matilda, but a newly elected Labour Councillor whilst out campaigning at the last local elections. Miranda Grell has been found guilty of falsely branding a Liberal Democrat rival a paedophile and telling electors he had sex with teenage boys. All strong stuff. The judge told her, "In furthering the interests of your community you fell into an error on two occasions in making statements that were untrue and damaging to one of your fellow candidates." She will now have to leave office as a councillor.

Why mention this? Well, Ms Grell implied that her opponent had "claimed to be married despite having a 19-year-old Thai boyfriend." It seems to me perfectly reasonable to highlight a deception, such as those who suggest happy marital bliss whilst engaging in sexual activity that is nothing of the kind. But to brand someone as "having sex with teenage boys", with a view to misleading the voters, is not right.

The great problem in society today is that the New Labour regime has allowed the goalposts to be moved so much in this regard that they are almost off the pitch entirely. It is now deemed perfectly legal to have a teenage boyfriend if you are an older man so long as the boy is over 16. But you have to be careful what you say. Ms Grell appears to have got her words mixed up a bit like Mrs Malaprop in Richard Brinsley Sheridan's play The Rivals. She would have been better off leaving well alone and let the electorate decide in their own time. She may well have won without resorting to such gossip.

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