We can all point to individuals who are exceptionally good at their jobs, and they are not restricted to any one party.

Your LibDem MP is a case in point, and I'm sure he does his absolute best for his constituents.

A recent poll, carried out in the Maidstone constituency, showed that Tory Anne Widdecombe was well respected, and considered a good constituency representative, even by the labour voters in that area.

I'm sure that Labour's Bob Marshall-Andrews was just as well thought of in his constituency. I know I rated him as one of the few honest politicians.

But all of them share one constraint, when it comes to operating in the House of Commons. They are under the cosh of the party whip system, when voting on measures.

So, while your MP may be great when conducting a meeting in the village hall of Little Dither in the Wold, in Westminster he either toes the party line on two and three line whips, or he becomes your next independent candidate, devoid of influence even if he is still elected.

And it is the party apparat which formulates policy, not the grunts who are ordered to endorse it.

Don T.