Perhaps so, but let’s imagine that Mr Mitchell was not a Cambridge-educated Cabinet minister, but rather a young man without connections from one of Britain’s many council estates. If the police had tried to plant fabricated evidence on him, he would never have stood a chance. It is unlikely that our most famous politicians, newspaper columnists and novelists would have rallied round, or that the fearless political correspondent of Channel 4 News would have come to his rescue. The young man might have protested his innocence, but few would have believed him. When he turned up in court, a duty solicitor would probably have advised him to plead guilty, after which he might or might not have gone to jail. We are not talking about a career setback here, but a life ruined.