Mayor must sharpen up his recruitment act

Dishonesty is indefensible. And the present anger over MPs' expenses has taken public tolerance of unethical behaviour in high places down to zero. The affair may yet be a matter for the police.

Meanwhile, the circumstances surrounding Mr Clement's departure, from what we know so far, raise questions about the Mayor's handling of the case.

Last week, Mr Clement admitted using his City Hall credit card for his own shopping, though he paid the money back. Boris Johnson described this as "crass" but not a sacking matter.

That is not an unreasonable judgment on the facts as they then appeared.

However, in the present climate of anger over MPs' expenses, a more experienced political operator might have probed further before giving Mr Clement a clean bill of health.

And indeed, the analysis of Mr Clement's receipts ahead of an appearance before the London Assembly has revealed irregularities. It also turns out that there had been questions over his use of his town hall credit card when he was leader of Bexley council.

Mr Clement's departure follows the loss of two deputy mayors last year, the successful youth worker Ray Lewis and the experienced businessman Tim Parker.

These mishaps could be blamed on Mr Johnson's enthusiasm for unconventional figures who undoubtedly brought fresh perspectives and skills to City Hall.

However, the Mayor's team had not carried out their homework properly - on allegations of financial irregularities and inappropriate behaviour in Mr Lewis's past, and on the way in which Mr Parker's responsibilities would fit in with those of elected officials.

The Mayor still needs to learn the lesson of those departures - that he needs to be in possession of all the facts about those he takes on.

The Clement affair hardly compares with the years of maladministration that took place at the London Development Agency during the Livingstone era, during which at least £3 million of taxpayers' money was given out in grants to organisations which did little or nothing in return. But the present Mayor does need to stop shooting from the hip.

Now let's move on

The new Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, upsets the tribalists of politics. His student views were well to the right of modern Conservatism.

After becoming Tory MP for Buckingham and marrying a Labour activist, he accepted a commission from Gordon Brown to carry out an education inquiry.

That appointment irritated fellow Conservatives, for whom it suggested disloyalty, which has been exploited by Labour MPs in revenge for the removal of the previous Speaker, Michael Martin.

It is time for all concerned need to get over this squabbling. From outside the Commons, all that matters at this point is that the Speaker should forge ahead as best he can with the cleaning up of politics and the rebuilding of the role after the disasters of Mr Martin's tenure.

Root-and- branch reform of MPs' remuneration, as well as reducing control of the parliamentary timetable by the executive and taking away the whips' grip on select committee membership, are immensely demanding tasks on which the health of British democracy depends.

The chances of achieving much before a general election may be small but MPs of all parties need to accept the result of their own election process and turn their thoughts to the future.

Tennis inspiration

The family of British number-one tennis player Anne Keothavong left persecution in Laos for a better life in Britain and she has done them proud.

Without being sent to an expensive foreign academy, she developed her skills on workaday facilities in east London.

As Wimbledon gets under way, we hope her story of determination and commitment will inspire many young Londoners.