𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Because of the Government’s turmoil, the recent extraordinary conviction of Sir Jeffrey Donaldson on 18 charges of sexual assault against two young girls did not receive the coverage it deserved. But it is a truly shocking saga. Never before in history has such a senior political figure been put on trial for such serious offences. Donaldson was not just the leader of the Democratic Unionists but also a pivotal negotiator over a power-sharing deal in Ulster. The DUP’s leadership now faces allegations that they knew more about Donaldson than they admitted.

There are other strange aspects to this saga such as the record of the Ministry of Defence making payments to Donaldson for “consultancy work” or the assertion that in 2006 two police officers, working out of MI5’s building in London, saw Donaldson enter a gay sauna, despite his public denunciations of homosexuality as “sinful”.

If such behaviour was a habit, he could have been vulnerable to blackmail. Indeed, in contrast to his image as a devout Protestant, Donaldson often appears to have been wild and reckless; more George Best than John Calvin.

On a trade mission to China, he became so inebriated that he projectile-vomited over the Mayor of Beijing, while on a trip to America he fell over drunk and tried to kiss a female politician. As more revelations emerge, the credibility of the DUP is rapidly being eroded.

After the captain’s superstar performance against D R Congo, Shakespeare’s words – Cry God for Harry, England, and Saint George – have never sounded more appropriate.

A wonderful woman to whom I owe a great debt

I have been very lucky with my literary endeavours but perhaps my most satisfying book was my life of the 19th century Liberal Prime Minister the 5th Earl of Rosebery, partly because he was such a rich, contradictory figure but also because Lady Rosebery, the 7th Earl’s wife, was so supportive, giving me access to private papers and welcoming me into the magnificent family home of Dalmeny near Edinburgh. She was a wonderful woman: a connoisseur of art, an intrepid traveller and a brilliant curator. She died recently aged 94, and I am all too aware of the debt I owe her.

Bankrupted by compassion

Social justice warriors are unceasing in their efforts to promote the twin doctrines of diversity and open borders. To this end, their latest initiative is to expand the network of so-called “Cities of Sanctuary” which aims to “embed a culture of welcome and compassion” towards migrants. Always keen to parade their own virtue, the activists are delighted at the dramatic growth of this movement, which now has hundreds of branches all over Britain, including 73 in local government, 915 in schools and 34 in the NHS.

The umbrella body had an income last year of £453,000, but some groups do even better than this, with the help of government backing. The City of Sanctuary at Sheffield, for instance, had an annual revenue last year of £482,000, of which £220,000 was an official grant. But the Sanctuary movement is based on deceit. Its very name is piously dishonest for most new arrivals here are economic migrants, not genuine refugees. The biggest problem with our immigration system is not that it is too hard, but it is too soft.

Our nation is being bankrupted by compassion. It is estimated that £5billion-a-year is spent on asylum support, while a further £12billion is annually swallowed up by universal credit for migrants. Many British people now feel like second-class citizens because of the priority given to migrants in housing and public services. It is an unfair approach that is fuelling resentment and building divisions for the future.