Here’s to you Mrs Robinson

The Spectator will have to amend its list of political scandals because if the sinisterly-named Selwyn Black’s allegations stand up, then Iris Robinson’s in a league of her own. An older woman seduces a toy boy and strives to set him up in business: this is a remake of The Graduate with high politics thrown into the mix.   

There is a further, potentially serious complication. The BBC allege that DUP leader Peter Robinson was aware of his wife’s financial misdemeanours but neglected to inform the appropriate authorities, as the ministerial code dictates he should. Robinson denies this with the tenacity of a man fighting for his political life. The delicate political situation at Stormont, where disagreement over power sharing persists, will be affected. If Robinson is implicated, then his position as leader of the DUP and Northern Ireland’s First Minister is untenable. I wonder what the Reverend Dr. Ian Paisley makes of it all…