Most people develop an instinct that alerts them to ‘problems’ – they develop the ‘smell test’. The speed of today’s news cycle is such that politicians can’t possibly keep on top of it and so being able to judge when things ‘don’t smell right’ is a key skill.

What pollutes the smell test? – stupidity; dogma; ignorance; money; the Whips; blindness to a cause that distorts judgement; politics; panic; fear; the media; the Security Services...

Our tribal two-party system means that MP’s have to support things they may not agree with. Knowing when to say ‘no’ to being interviewed is an important skill to learn. They ought to have a ‘nose’ for nonsense so they can at least avoid being cornered by reporters and embarrassed by having to justify the unjustifiable. Some national politicians just don’t have it.

These are just some examples:

· Allowing privatised water companies to dump raw sewage into rivers.

· Overriding local opposition to huge housing developments around the country and gutting the planning system to allow it.

· Turning a blind eye to blatant genocide in Gaza and treating pensioners who object to it as ‘terrorists’. The Home Secretary (who is a member of and receives donations from Labour Friends of Israel) conflates criticism of Israeli genocide with ‘terrorism’.

· Considering a request from Israel to join the 5 Eyes intelligence alliance.

· Accepting a cock and bull story about Putin being the richest man in the history of the world from someone prosecuted for tax invasion in Russia and subsequently knighted for his ‘services’ around ‘human rights and ‘highlighting corruption’.

· In Ukraine failing to notice that it is losing the war and supporting blatant Nazis; failure to acknowledge widespread financial and political corruption; sending billions to Ukraine while cutting public services at home; accusing Russia of ‘stealing’ Russian speaking children from a war zone for their own protection.

· Watching the Prime Minister wrap himself in the flag to make himself more popular.

· Accepting the nonsense that Russia blew up its own gas pipeline to Germany thus causing an energy crisis in Germany and the collapse of German industry.

· Spending £78m on acquiring technology from Israel for the Falkland Islands similar to the “iron Dome’ Defence system while failing to provide effective UK air defence.

· Uncritically accepting censorship under the pretence of ‘National Security’.

· Prostituting the position of the Head of State by ‘getting’ the King to invite President Trump to an unparallelled second state visit to the UK to ‘get on his right side’.

· Glamorising patronising Public Schoolboys like Farage who think that drinking beer out of pint glasses and swearing makes them somehow acceptable to ‘ordinary folk’.

· Recognising an ex-Al Queda terrorist listed as ‘wanted by the USA’ with a $10,000,000 bounty on his head as the new President of Syria, with MI6 support -including image advice to ‘trim beard and wear suit to look the part’.

Another name for the ‘smell test’? COMMON SENSE. Our rigged two-party political system squeezes it out of people.