The Last Ditch by Tom Paine

Link: Illegal immigration ‘fleet’ has only one van – Telegraph.

We will not restore faith in British politics until the press stops allowing politicians, like Humpty-Dumpty in Alice in Wonderland, to have words mean whatever they want them to mean. "Spin" is legitimate political art. It involves presenting facts in a good light for the politician in question. As such it is a form of advocacy and is  not the same as lying. To say you are deploying "a fleet of vans" when you have only one is not spin. It is a lie. The Minister who told it should now resign in disgrace.

Only when journalists hold politicians to rudimentary ethical standards, can we hope to restore public trust. I am almost as angry with the Daily Telegraph’s sub-editors for allowing "spin" to be used as a synonym for "lies" as I am with Liam Byrne for lying.