GEORGE Galloway was not the only Labour MP who opposed the war against Iraq, but he is the only one to be thrown out of his party.

It is essential in the increasingly discredited world of politics that freedom of speech is protected, irrespective of party restraints.

Collective responsibility can only go so far. There are some issues of such magnitude that individual conscience must be allowed to break free, as Robin Cook, Clare Short, and Glenda Jackson have demonstrated without censure.

We would defend anyone's right to protest and we condemn any political party which was not big enough to accept an alternative point of view.

There is no doubt that many in the Labour Party and millions of ordinary people share Mr Galloway's opposition to a war which has left question marks in the minds of even those who would not dream of undermining Tony Blair.

But Mr Galloway has been ousted from the Labour Party because he crossed the line beyond legitimate opposition and made his membership untenable.

He did not just say that the war on Iraq was wrong. He went on to urge British troops to defy orders, called on Arabs to attack British soldiers, and ended up threatening to stand against Labour.

In the circumstances, could Mr Galloway really expect to remain in the fold? Indeed, why would he want to stay in a party led by someone he clearly believes to be a war criminal?

It is like suggesting that Alex Ferguson would keep playing someone who started kicking the other way because he violently disagreed with his team tactics.

Second thoughts

TWO paedophiles - one a retired headteacher and the other a church minister - were locked up yesterday by judges who ruled that their original non-custodial sentences were too lenient.

Along with all decent people, we welcome the jailing of two men who sexually abused children.

But doesn't it defy belief that the judiciary required a second chance to throw them behind bars?