Sketch: 'It wasn't even like this for Amy Winehouse' – court No1 mobbed

Published on Thursday 11 March 2010 21:35

THE reinforced glass dock at court number one in the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court is ordinarily the home to a procession of drunks, drug addicts and shoplifters.

It is a large but nondescript room in an instantly forgettable modern building a stone's throw from the Houses of Parliament and the Thames

where unextraordinary prosecutions begin their court journey.

But yesterday journalists queued for hours and members of the public packed the gallery to witness the landmark appearance of three Labour MPs and a Conservative peer.

Unsurprisingly, the four looked extremely uncomfortable as they trooped in under the full glare of public scrutiny.

The three MPs appeared together. Speaking in clear voices, Elliot Morley and David Chaytor confirmed their names and dates of birth. For variety, the clerk told Jim Devine his and he replied confidently: "That's correct."

The full charges against the men were read out by the clerk of the court, detailing the false allowances they are accused of claiming over the past five years

The charges were full of legal jargon, punctuated with phrases such as "ACA2 Additional Cost Allowance claim form" and "incidental expenses provision".

The charges also accuse the MPs of doing something "which to your knowledge was or might be misleading, false or deceptive".

Each man stared straight ahead. Their lawyer, Julian Knowles, made it clear his clients "unequivocally and steadfastly" maintain their innocence.

Mentioning the 1689 Bill of Rights, he said matters arising in parliament must be dealt with in parliament and all MPs should be treated the same.

In a little under 15 minutes their hearing was over. The trio were then replaced in the dock by Lord Hanningfield, who appeared as Paul E W White in court documents.

One court security guard later said he had never seen anything like it: "It wasn't even like this for Amy Winehouse."