* THOUGH in the end it was right that he should go, we are the poorer for Liam Fox’s departure. He was an effective cabinet minister who stood up for defence, about which he cares passionately, squeezed the best deal possible out of the Treasury and began to reform the extraordinary ministry over which he presided.

* I sat through the opening speeches of the Hillsborough debate on Monday. As is usual when harrowing issues of this sort are debated, the House was at its magisterial best, truly reflecting sentiment in the country. The Taylor report into the awful day in 1989 when 96 football fans lost their lives was highly critical of the police operation, and stadium design will never be the same again.

There is also little doubt that the anguish of the families of Liverpool supporters who died at Hillsborough was heightened by misinformation peddled in certain newspapers. Shame on them.

Now, I really do not think we should register journalists or impose a code of conduct as some are demanding. However, they can’t demand freedoms that are, for practical purposes, unfettered without assuming some level of responsibility. For evidence of just how responsibly the mighty UK press can behave look no further than the Murdoch debacle. Too often the defence “in the public interest” is wheeled out by tabloids peddling material which is simply of interest to the public, which is an entirely different matter.

Government papers on the Hillsborough tragedy will now be released early following a Freedom of Information request.

However, unusually, release will be through an independent panel chaired by a bishop. We should watch the process carefully as it may have uses in the sensitive management of future disclosures.

n It was a great pleasure to attend the enthronement of the new Bishop of Salisbury on Saturday.

The cathedral is a source of inspiration even for us poor country cousins who subsist beyond the city limits. I do wish Bishop Nicholas well in his ministry.