In her recent court case, in which she was found guilty of harassment, Claudia Webbe the disgraced former Labour MP (who now sits as an independent) made a statement in court that made me sit up and take notice.

She said:

‘I am not mad, I’m a member of Parliament’

Sadly these two states are not mutually exclusive. You can be a screaming nutjob inside or a criminal yet to be apprehended and still be able to be elected to the House of Commons. Get selected for the right seat where the electorate would vote for a dog turd provided that it is wearing the correct colour of rosette and you are in.

History is replete with examples of MP’s who go ‘off the rails’. There are MP’s who have got overly angry in the House and grab the ceremonial Mace and swing it around their heads, MP’s who started massive riots, MP’s who commit obvious and easily detectable frauds, MP’s who spied for Britain’s enemies and attempted to fake their own deaths and MP’s who self delude themselves about the level of support their views have in the country as a whole. MP’s can be just like anyone else and suffer from character flaws that lead them to either commit crimes or fall victim to hubris.

You can be an MP and be utterly ‘out there’ and sit in the Commons provided that you are not sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Madness and MP status and not exclusive from one another, a person can be both at the same time.