Teatime story
Second despatch of the day, but I just thought this item from the BBC Belfast newsroom ought to be shared with a slightly wider audience. Bear with us, and you'll get tea and biscuits at the end.

Carrickfergus Council has written to every council in the UK asking for its support for an inquiry into the death of Royal Irish Regiment soldier Paul Cochrane, who shot himself at Drumard Barracks in Armagh after complaining about suffering abuse.

On behalf of Peterborough Council, its Conservative leader Neville Sanders returned the letter scribbing a message which stated that "members of the armed forces do get killed, be it by accident or design, that is what they are paid for".

The Belfast Telegraph says Mr Sanders told them he was fed up paying taxes to cover for the lazy Irish, he did not know where - in his words - poxy Carrickfergus was, and he was annoyed at the council there for wasting his time. Mr Sanders engaged in a great more invective about NI.

His remarks have clearly embarrassed Conservative Central Office - the Tories' Northern Ireland spokesman Quentin Davies said the comments attributed to Mr Sanders were revolting and would be rejected with disgust by every thinking Conservative.

It's a very, erm, original way of resigning. Nice to see The Quiet Man's policies of social inclusion are really getting through to the Conservative Party's grass roots.

Oh, and this is the website that everyone's talking about...