Monday, 27th February, 2006

There will be plenty of mayors around the world thankful that they are not subject to the kind of disciplinary procedures that saw London boss "Red" Ken Livingstone outed for four weeks. The punishment was handed out last week for some ill chosen words Mr Livingston made to a Jewish journalist last year when leaving a reception where he had partaken of a glass of wine or three. As we reported back on 14 December 2005, Mayor Livingstone likes a drink at a reception, as he explained when in the midst of the controversy caused by describing a Jewish reporter as being like a concentration camp guard. "I mean the idea I would attend a reception - I have to go to many receptions - and not have a drink? You've got to be kidding - some of them are unbelievably tedious."

Having had a few drinks before he made his comment to Evening Standard journalist Oliver Finegold as he left an official reception at City Hall celebrating the 20th anniversary of Chris Smith's coming out as Britain's first openly gay MP was not sufficient for Mr Livingstone to avoid being found guilty by the Adjudication Panel for England of bringing his post into disrepute