No excuse for rudeness

The first high-profile heckle of the election campaign came in south London yesterday when one Ben Butterworth had a pop at the PM because his children can't get into his choice of state school.



Now I'm all in favour of the public arguing with their elected representatives in public. They can even wing a few eggs their way, as long as they don't mind a Prescott-style fightback, but I do wish Mr Butterworth hadn't presumed to address Gordon Brown by his first name repeatedly. It's rude.

You may think that Brown is an evil man, but he should be addressed as Prime Minister, or Mr Brown at the very least. The office demands that respect even if the man doesn't.

I blame his predecessor with all that "call me Tony" rubbish.