sad story, sad people, conflict of interests and (ongoing) infringment of law! this is what Labours are today!

riccardo, brussels,

The last few days have shown up Gordo's 'new style' of government, for precisely what it is....it is Blair's same old bundle of tales and spin, but this time told by someone with, at best, 10% of the ability (or should it be 'believability') his predecessor...!!! If you've got any b**ls, Mr Brown, call an election now....

Jeremy Sutcliffe, Northwich, Cheshire, UK

This has effectively buried the other two issues, hasn't it? Er,... what were they?

Leak all this out in dribs and drabs and our attention is directed where the magician wants it while he,...

how did he hide that rabbit in the top hat?

Derrick, MK, UK

We are used to asking, 'did they fall or were they pushed?' in regard to politicians and the like. Seems now it should be were they 'bound and gagged' or 'kept under lock and key?'

Judi Martin, Maryculter, Aberdeenshire

Wendy Alexander is an embarrassment to Scotland and must go now!

Mark Shaw, Bearsden, Scotland

People whitout honour....but with a lot of cash!

riccardo, brussels,

There is a direct correlation between the soulless and subtly devious politicians who have taken the stage over the last 15 years and the deterioration of the political, social and economic institutions over which they have influence.

Politics is a business for the politicians, run by the politicians, manipulated by the politicians to fill their pockets, increase their pensions, do deals and increase their inflated egos so that they can go onto some consulting job financed by some government that they did favours for at the expense of their own constituents and country.

Politicians, many of whom are lawyer are now legalized thieves. Arrogant and without an iota of integrity. Politics is a business for those who know they can spin any yarn and walk away with a pot of gold even when caught and convicted.
Politics has now become a game, a super ‘con’, another endless ‘soap opera

JC, Lisbon,

I never thought it possible but this evil bunch are even more sleazy and dishonest than Blair's gang. Surely they must realise how bad they look in the eyes of the electorate and how dishonourably they have behaved. They are beneath contempt.

paul turfery, Cork, Ireland

Labours = shameless people

riccardo, brussels,

Brown cannot sack them all. There are not enough "clean" Labours around!

riccardo, brussels,

I do not know why the public is getting excited, then again if they are like me no we are not. Labour will not fall on their swords, too many years of noses in the trough has made them immune to anything that the Press and public throw at them, time for a change methinks....

Jim, Norway,

Excuse me, but why exactly does Ms Alexander need a donation to a "leadership campaign" when she was the only candidate?

Dave, Manchester, UK

and Labours are the people who for the last decade have being saying they were pure, honest, transparent, and all that crap...

riccardo, brussels,

They think we are gullible fools and idiots, they treat us like gullible fools and idiots - and we are gullible fools and idiots for letting them get away with it

Cassandra, Rolvenden, England

Paul Gray quit, we are told by Alistair Darling "As a matter of honour", when a "Junior Official" failed to follow some administrative rules.

We now have countless senior members of the Government and Labour party that seem to be without honour, who will not resign when they failed in their duty to abide by laws that they put in place,

When they break the law, they only consider it "regrettable"

They are without honour, and so is Gordon Brown for failing to make them resign or sacking them.

Moral compass? The compass Brown inherited was a geometry one, ideal for spinning.

Eddie, Cheshunt, UK

Linking up with David's comment above, ignorance is no excuse in the eye of the law...hmmmm. So next time you accidentally go up a one way street or exceed 30mph by 5...that can be your defence and there is this clear example by our government that ignorance IS an excuse.

Mary Heaney, London,

What business does london labour have in ordering the head of the labour party in scotland not to resign.
This type of London interference has done alot of damage and is the reason the scottish people returned a party in the scottish parliment that cannot be ordered to do anything by london masters. The people of scotland will justifiably punish the increasingly sleezey and tarnished labour party and the union too

Patrick, Glasgow, Scotland

These shameless and power crazy New Labourites can cling on to their jobs for now but they are in for shock in the next general election. Short term gain, long term pain awaits.

Tom, St. Albans, England

This labour government are raking around the dust bin

john, DUNFERMLINE, scotland

The Alexanders are beneath contempt; Douglas for telling his sister not to resign, she for supinely obeying him - and all to stop Brown being 'exposed!' Had Ms Harman and Ms Alexander resigned, Brown would have been left smelling of roses and could have announced an enquiry in relatively cleared air. As it is ...

Jethro Hughes, St. Maurice de Lignon, France

These are people singularly without honour.

They do the country a very great disservice by perpetuating the suspicion that there is one law for politicians and another for the electorate.

Ubi, Edinburgh, UK

Remember this strategy -- deny, "regret", ignore -- next time you get a speeding fine. It wasn't me; I wasn't there; I cannot recall; I didn't know; I'm as angry as anyone; it's a wider issue; we need a full enquiry; it would be inappropriate for me to comment until the enquiry has reached its findings. By some weird twist of reality, it is possible that it does not work quite so well in your case as they expect it to in theirs.

David Masu, Zürich,

An excellent story - great journalism chaps.

And the final paragraph is beyond satire !!

Celtic Connection, Wales,

Paul Gray, the official who quit after taking the blame for the loss of two discs containing bank details of 7 million families, is back at work on a plan to improve civil servants’ skills, two weeks after he resigned as chairman of HM Revenue and Customs.

What's he going to do to improve skills ......tell them to use white envelopes for confidential data?

bxf, manchester, lancs

It's all rather sordid.

People used to go into Public Life to do good deeds and if they fell short of the standards expected then they resigned and went and did good deeds quietly - John Profumo being a classic example.

Our current Government seems to have gone into Public Life for Power and its Trappings. Nothing could ever persuade them to resign with any dignity.

Tom Maxwell, Reigate,

Blimey! That was a quick come back - even by this government's standards.

Pushkin, Durham,