It is the arrogance of Labour that thinks the law applies only to the "little people" and not to them that gets me here. Then when caught they try bluster and spin, talking about an unintentional breach of the "rules" - not you notice a breach of the law.

John Smith, London,

It's so very surprising to see David Aaronovitch finding excuses for the labour government.

David, these were not "moments of madness"; these are examples of a government and a party that has gone mad on power. They now do whatever it takes to hold on to power, for no discernable reason other than a desire to hold on to power. They do no good for anyone other thna themselves. The "Donorgate" is a very good example of what teh Labour Party has been all about for the last 10 years: all mouth and no trousers. they consider teh job done once they write something into an Act of Parliament without thinking about putting these things into deeds.

The sooner that grumpy Gordon calls an election and we can turf him and his rotten government out the better.

James, London,

Leave Zidane out of it. You will never understand what drove him as it is not in your cords.
Zidane's gesture has nothing to do with sleaze and money like your friends and comparses that you discribe so well.
Only a true Mediterranean can understand the pressure of standing for one's Honor, whatever the cost.
So keep away from Zidane, people have well understood his gesture and that is why he is still the most popular man in France.
Don't try and spoil that.

Bob Andrews, Paris,

That's alright then.

What a fool I've been to think that there was anything to worry about.

Just busy people with a bit too much on their plate and a bit of bad luck.

Bill Rispin, Hull, England

Summing up the Nu-Lab style of management, the words of Dick Dastardly spring to mind.

"Those medals you wear
On your mangy old chest
Should be there for bungling
It's what you do best"

Tim Collyer, Sussex,

Occam's Razor states that "entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem". Literally, "entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity". This essentially means "don't overcomplicate an explanation by bringing in irrelevant factors." To be really contemporary: KISS "Keep It Simple, Stupid".

Nick, London, UK

What's that Razor about choosing the simplest solution called? My method is to take a step backwards to see more of the big picture. Columnists have visual problems with dendritic entities. The big picture tells me that New Labour was ditch born of a drab presentational opportunity. It has always dealt in 'designer lies' - claims that they will never quite be accountable for. There is such a constant flow of these it is not easy to focus on how each one contributes. However, sailing close to the wind will encounter bursts of spray which may appear crazy but are inevitable. My advice is to take a few examples & track them until a representative picture is clear e.g. all the times we were told post prices needed to be increased & that labour relations were being 'sorted', to find 10 years later increases were bribes/blackmail & the workers still go home early before all the work is done. This will reveal smart-arses pretending that everything can be managed - including human nature.

Ali Murray, Solihull, UK

Mr Aaronovitch'sarticle is a form of apologia for the Labour party which I believe he supports as he still unaccountably supports the catastophic invasion of Iraq..Engaged, entertaining prose can explain away in a chummy manner through chummy dinners with Labour politicians how these unfortunate things can happen to the best of us. That may be. What he fails to understand ,or is reluctant to accept ,can be summarised in a few old cliches: enough is enough, thin end of the wedge, no smoke without fire, power corrupts etc. And his account of disaster does not include:melt down immigration policy ,deaths in dirty hospitals overpaid doctors, ,overloaded services, underfunded military,grid lock motorways, failed penal policy, a banking crash,lost data for 25 million yet a crazy ID card project,3000 pieces of new PC law, a failing police force,no EU treaty referendum. It's not minor sleezy dealings it's the last straw and the camel's back of Nulabour support has well and truly broken.

David, Uzes, France

What is so refreshing about this article is that shows up why most of us have given up throwing the blame. On the other hand a lot of scoundrels are let off the hook. The Labour Party Gaff beggars belief. I suspect Brown wont easily get off this hook. Save for the fact that the Tories are even better at this crookery than Labour. The Data Security stiry will run and run.It really shows us how fallibele we all are!!!

john collins, Eastbourne, East Sussex

Another Week another load of old tripe. Here is how I see it. Labour were desperate for money in the wake of the election that Gordon bottled. They gambled that if they won the election breaking the rules on donations would be a temporary blip as Brown would be basking in the glow of his second honeymoon. I have very little doubt whatsoever that Brown himself would have been well aware of this arrangement and indeed the entire upper echelons of the party are likely to have known. Be honest with yourself david that is far more likely than some treasurer lost his head for five minutes...
Now on the matter of the discs. Simple systemic failure. The revenue were just prioritising as directed by the government. therefore lots of money spent on glossy adverts(spin) for tax credits and no particular worry about data security (Gordon does not value privacy or data he believes he already owns it and can do whatever he wishes with it. e.g. sell it to banks - see ID card plans.

steph, brighton,

But the most hand-to-forehead credibility straining idea of all is that Gordon Brown should have taken over the Labour Party and never once asked who his handful of top donors were. Simple self preservation would, you would have thought, have dictated an enquiry which wouldn't have taken more than a few minutes of his precious prime ministerial time - after all he found enough space to discuss the election that never was with his minions, a conversation which must have included the enquiry "can we afford it" or "how much do we have in the bank, and how much can we raise".

Anne Murphy, London,