Carter-Ruck are back, back, BACK!

Less than a week after trying to ban any reporting of a parliamentary question about their client Trafigura's poisoning of 30,000 Ivorians, they've written to every MP and peer claiming that as the matter is 'sub judice', MPs can't have a debate about the affair!

Er… does that mean that nobody - MP or not - can talk about any matter that's moving through the courts? Can our elected representatives not choose to discuss whatever's important to this country? Not according to Carter-Ruck.

Luckily, the Speaker's pretty clear:

"It is not sub judice under the house's rules ... There is no question of our own proceedings being in any way inhibited."

Which is élite-speak for 'go fuck yourselves'.

What I don't quite get is why Trafigura think this is good for their company? Perhaps as esssentially very bad men engaged in a filthy business, public opinion doesn't matter, but they aren't making any friends - and the Tory MPs who'll (unfortunately) be in government soon take affronts to Parliamentary authority very seriously indeed.