Once upon a time a government proposed breaking the law

The matter got to the first gatekeeper, the government's most senior legal official

'you cannot do that, I will resign'

But he government shrugged, and carried on its way

1.

The government came to the next gatekeeper, the Attorney General

The Attorney General nodded and clapped and cheered, and the government carried on its way

2.

The next gatekeeper was the Lord Chancellor, who had sworn to protect the Rule of Law

The Lord Chancellor said some threatened breaches of the law were acceptable, and the government carried on its way

3.

The matter came to the floor of the House of Commons, perhaps the grandest of gatekeepers, and a Cabinet Minister told MPs that the breach of the law was fin because it would be limited and specific

And the government carried on its way

4.

The next gatekeeper was the Cabinet Secretary, the very guardian of the Ministerial and Civil Service Codes

Surely the Cabinet Secretary would stop this in its tracks?

But the Cabinet Secretary sanctioned the breach as within the Codes

And the government carried on its way

5.

From afar, former Prime Ministers and even Brexit supporting politicians shouted their objections

The government shrugged carried on its way

6.

Every gatekeeper that is supposed to stop such a proposal ever getting traction had failed

Some of the gatekeepers were even complicit

And the government will continue going on its way

(to be continued)

7.