A beacon of civility

IF anyone should listen to the Queen’s annual Christmas message, it is Britain’s boorish political class.

For as the nation counts down to Brexit, our public discourse has become increasingly toxic – nowhere more so than in Parliament.

With customary wisdom, Her Majesty sought to soothe a society ruptured by division. Echoed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, she denounced injurious ‘tribalism’ and urged respect for others.

Paying most attention should be oafish Jeremy Corbyn, whose profoundly sexist insult of Theresa May as a ‘stupid woman’ – then lying about it – is a prima facie case of the coarsening debate.

The Queen has always been a beacon of tolerance and civility. If only our puffed-up politicians followed her shining example.