LIAM Fox stood up in the Commons to claim he had “done no wrong”, though he may just have linked his personal life rather too closely to his professional one.

Arrayed behind him were the baying Tory backbenchers claiming they were ‘certain’ he was correct.

The problem is that Sir Gus O’Donnell does not agree with any of them, as we see from his report. So much for certainty.

Now, after Oliver Letwin’s ‘recycling’ activities in a public park, we have Mike Fry, in a letter to the Echo on October 18 – claiming he, too, is ‘certain’ nothing private was disposed of there.

He seems equally sure, based on his own council experience, that nothing other than items such as leaflets and brochures would be disposed of in this fashion.

Just how can he be certain? Did he help Mr Letwin sift through the material?

Clearly, he did not, so his certainty is on as dubious ground as the Tory backbenchers’ certainty was last week. Do these people think we are all stupid?

IAN MCBAIN, Kingston Road Poole