Unthinkable? Nurturing Northstead

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/04/unthinkable-northstead-mcguinness

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The manor of Northstead, on the northern end of Scarborough, Yorkshire, is taking possession of a brand-new steward and bailiff, appointed by HM Treasury. The job has no duties, functions or salary. So it's not because of any failure of stewardship that some previous incumbents have departed the post after only one day (indeed, when all 15 Ulster Unionists stood down en bloc in December 1985, Northstead took delivery of seven in a single day, the first being Ian Paisley and the last Enoch Powell). It's simply a device for allowing MPs to resign. The stewardship is an office of profit under the crown, so a sitting MP who takes it cannot continue in Parliament. The people of the manor accept whoever they're sent without protest, though there was disappointment when Peter Mandelson and Boris Johnson failed to visit. Yet the fact that no service is required should not preclude it either. Here is a chance for the newest steward to break the mould – as Martin McGuinness has done already by becoming the first Sinn Féin MP to fill the post. A steward, the dictionary says, is a person appointed to administer a property, manage eating arrangements, or look after passengers on a ship. Most of these opportunities exist in this seaside spot. Steward McGuinness might usefully check that the gutters were clean in Woodland Ravine, and the brie in baguettes up to standard in Peasholm Park. And the people of Northstead could mass on the pavements to salute their new steward and bailiff. Or not, as the case may be.