The Govester goes rogue and veers from history lecture to full-on rant | John Crace

Occasionally, though, he can be tempted out of his stupor to engage with the real world. Always a nervy time for his minders as they are never quite sure which Govester they are going to get. The sweaty, wild-eyed, manic version or the near comatose, morose, self-pitying man.

The only good protester was a dead protester. Bring on the tanks. Tell the police to stop being so goddamned nice. Crack some skulls. Inside every protesting university student lurked a secret lefty antisemite. Mikey did name a few rightwing antisemites in the interests of balance but his contempt was all reserved for those on the left. The bien pensants who cloak their antisemitism in rubbish about wanting a peaceful resolution to the war in Gaza.

He ended in full-on rant. He refused to acknowledge the jurisdiction of the international criminal court. How dare it cite Benjamin Netanyahu. It was only meant to go for terrorists and rogue states. Not for democracies that might have broken the rules. That was much too close to home. If they could go for Bibi they could go for anyone. Maybe even us. His minders hastily bundled him into the car before he could do any more damage.

Glen did his best to make it sound as if he was sincere in his belief that this should never happen again. He probably even meant it. MPs have very short-term selective memories when it suits them. Believe they are of a higher moral order than their predecessors as they wash away the sins of the past. Only, we all know we will back here saying the same things all over again within a matter of years. If not months.

Where is the grand, futile gesture? The one that might signify real change. A minister resigning on behalf of all those ministers who got away with it. That would take courage. Integrity. Pigs might fly.