Cameron tells Tories they no longer have to follow international law

People go on about the awful pressure of 24/7 media on our leaders, and how hard the constant scrutiny must be to bear. But politicians and civil servants know that more means less. As more news sites and tweeters repeat the same stories, and millions of ‘diverse’ voices say the same thing, the basics of power go unexamined.

Take the ministerial code, which guides the conduct of politicians in office. It is one of the fundamentals of public life. The opposition (such as it is) and the media can use it as a stick to beat the government. The prime minister can fire ministers who break it.

‘Ministers of the Crown are expected to behave in a way that upholds the highest standards of propriety,’ it begins.

OK, but how?

When the Conservatives formed their coalition with the Liberal Democrats, the May 2010 code spelt out their duties.

1.2 The Ministerial Code should be read alongside the Coalition agreement and the background of the overarching duty on Ministers to comply with the law “including international law and treaty obligations and to uphold the administration of justice” and to protect the integrity of public life.