Nick Davies

The whole world threw up its hands in horror at the electoral malpractice which was revealed in Florida in the long harsh climax to last November’s presidential election. As though election-rigging were new. As though election-rigging were some kind of American disease, which couldn’t happen here.

It was an almost invisible event. Far away from the high-profile politics of Westminster, in the pebble-dash suburbs of north London, in a cramped and over-heated room on the first floor of Barnet magistrates court, Mr Miles Parker, aged 29, was convicted last month (Sept) of two criminal offences. The case was barely reported. Yet it deserved a little more attention.