Just waiting

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It never seems to take long for a Prime Minister to get to the point of defending hapless ministers who are accused of some sort of misdeed or other.  And it rarely pays; they usually end up having to sack the minister concerned in the end, looking indecisive and weak as a result.

The more we hear about Jeremy Hunt, the worse it looks for him, and, by extension, Cameron. 

I can understand the distinction between the actions of a minister and those of a civil servant, as a general rule, and the idea that the minister should always take the responsibility for anything and everything done by his or her civil servants seems rather an odd one.  However, the more senior the civil servant, the more probable it is that the minister really should have known what the civil servant was doing – and the more likely it is that the minister will end up carrying the can. 

And special advisors are in a category all of their own.  Blaming a rogue spad is unlikely to get any minister off the hook; the whole nature of the job depends on people being certain that the spad really does represent the minister’s views, and enjoys the full confidence of the minister.

Cameron’s response, at a superficial level, bears all the hallmarks of fair play and justice.  ‘We must wait until we hear his side of the story’ is entirely reasonable at first sight.  However, as presented, it gives the impression that Cameron himself is waiting to hear what Hunt has to say to Leveson before deciding whether to sack him or refer the matter to his advisor on the ministerial code.

I find that very hard to believe.  Surely, Cameron must have spoken to Hunt and asked him some questions directly?  And if he got the right answers, then why not set the record straight now?  And if he got the wrong answers, why not act now?  He really cannot simply be waiting to hear what Hunt says at the same time as the rest of us hear it. That's just not credible.