The Parliament about to be dissolved to make way for a general election has been disastrous for the good name of British politics. It is crucial, therefore, that the election campaign itself should be conducted in such a way as to rebuild confidence in the democratic process, and not further damage it. Public cynicism, already at a high level as shown by diminishing turnout figures in previous elections, went off the scale as it emerged that many members of Parliament had seen public office as an opportunity for personal enrichment. They pushed the rules concerning their reclaimable expenses to the limit and beyond. Many of those standing for re-election have had to repay considerable sums that were claimed in excess of their entitlement, but the public still thinks ordinary people would not have been let off so lightly had they done the same with, say, a claim for benefits.

It is not unreasonable, therefore, for the electorate to take such factors into account. They may vote largely according to which party’s policies they like best, but election manifestos do not cover every eventuality. That is why questions of principle, character and even of personal morality are also relevant. Such scrutiny is particularly appropriate over what are called “life issues” – abortion and euthanasia. But no party has a monopoly of vice or virtue, and democracy suffers if debate sinks to the level of personal abuse. Indeed, expressions of contempt rebound on those who utter them, because the public is inclined to feel all politicians are as bad as each other. It would be much better if, instead of competing in insults, they competed in what they were proposing honestly to do to further the common good – without promising more than they can deliver.

Each party will strive to create a favourable image for itself, while striving equally to impose a negative image on their opponents. The public is not easily fooled, and would prefer an honest debate about ...

The sexual-abuse crisis which has engulfed the Catholic Church is, above all, an occasion of profound regret at the damage done to the victims. But it is also an occasion of anger at the way the Church has treated those victims. The pain caused by clerics has been exacerbated by the misgovernance of bishops. So deep is the hurt that the victims feel, that it is understandable that attention has turned to the role of ...

Pope Benedict’s dramatic apology to the Catholics of Ireland was nothing less than a stinging rebuke of the Irish bishops for their incompetence, and the neglect of their duty to stop the abuse of children by priests. “Errors of judgement” and “failures of leadership” had “seriously undermined your credibility and effectiveness”, he told them. By the end of his pastoral letter, ...

The High Court’s ruling in favour of the charity Catholic Care on Wednesday may have implications far beyond the Dioceses of Leeds, Middlesbrough and Hallam to which it directly applies, and far beyond the issue of whether Catholic Care is obliged by law to consider gay couples as suitable adopters of children. If the obligation stands, the charity would either have to withdraw from adoption work or sever its ...

This is proving a long, cold winter for the Catholic Church in relation to the sexual abuse of children by clergy. Hard on the heels of the devastating Murphy report into sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin, similar cases are now coming to light elsewhere in Europe, especially in Germany. The possibility of a similar scandal in Spain is now being openly talked about there too, and child abuse allegations are ...