BLIND FAITH

The minister had been a big hitter. As Home Secretary he’d been tough on immigration, tough on the causes of immigration. He’d beefed up the police force and, if the figures were to be believed, had reduced reported crime figures by nearly two percent. The Prime Minister thought of him as a jewel in the cabinet crown.

Of course his blindness, his lack of real vision, was what had got him the job in the first place. He was a natural for providing the Government with a smoke screen to hide what was really going on. Being blind the minister couldn’t actually see and had therefore to have total faith in what his advisers told him.

“Are you sure this is a library?” he asked his aide.

“Yes sir.”

“Bloody noisy for a library. And quite a surprise they’re serving champagne too.”

“Yes sir.”

His college at the Foreign Office was stone deaf. He was totally reliant on sign language from his advisers.

“So you’re telling me that there are weapons of mass destruction.” He signed.

“Yes sir.” The sign language answer was quite clear.

At D.E.F.R.A. the minister with responsibility was dumb.

“Have you taken every precaution against the spread of this outbreak?” asked a journalist.

The minister just nodded rather unconvincingly.