It appears that my Noble Lords are more accustomed to hard work...

I see from a copy of the Evening Standard loft behind on my train home this evening that there is some controversy over the decision to add in an extra week of recess for the House of Commons in mid-November. It would therefore seem sensible to assume that the Lords will be off as well, wouldn't it? Well, no. The Lords will sit on three of the four days concerned, demonstrating perhaps that young people today don't really get the notion of 'work ethic'.

In fairness though, it is easy to accuse MPs of fecklessness. For some, the recall during the summer prevented them from carrying out scheduled constituency work, or from taking a planned holiday. We would be the first to complain if our employer did something similar to us, without extra pay, or even time off in lieu.

Defending MPs is not popular in this country, and the expenses scandal damaged the reputation of all elected politicians for a generation, but nonetheless, there comes a point when such a blanket condemnation of all, regardless of their behaviour, risks driving out the very people who we need to keep, those who place a high value on good character, for they are the ones most affected by abuse by the public and by the media.

And as it seems that Parliament will be sitting for more days in this session than had previously been the case (on a per annum basis), the charge of skiving does seem a bit harsh...