Brightening up after a heavy shower, a theme likely to be repeated right through the day. The downpour has knocked back the temperature, which had risen to 14C at 10 am.
I'm pleased that Sri Lanka's civil war appears to be over, although there is severe hardship for many thousands of people who were caught up in the final fighting. It can only be hoped that the grievances of the Tamil population will be addressed by the government in Colombo, and that any alleged discrimination by the majority Singhalese will be at an end. Otherwise, the Tamil Tigers are likely to return in a different guise. The Tamil Tigers can be credited with the invention of suicide bombing, for as much as that is something to be counted as a credit.
The Speaker of the House of Commons is to stand down, and this afternoon at 2.30 he will announce when. It was on his watch that disclosure of MP's expenses was delayed, and if he had not tried to stop that, he might well not be in the position he is in now. I maintain that he is at least partly a scapegoat, and I do hope that those who have done wrong will be called to account. At the ballotbox, by the Commons authorities or if necessary in a Court of Law.
