Glutton for Punishment

Massive respect goes out to Yvonne Powell, a Wimbledon Magistrate, who has just completed a week wearing an electronic tag to get an insight into what it's like.

I'm sure I wouldn't enjoy the experience, not least because my weekday place of work is 4 hours drive from my weekend place of residence. I don't imagine even the mildest Magistrate sanctioning a curfew order that says that I need stay within 200 miles of my home between the hours of 7pm and 6am every day.

Maybe the next step is for a Magistrate to try an Unpaid Work Requirement, where they would have to spend a large amount of their spare time on tasks benefiting the community.

But we already do that - and we don't get those rather fetching luminous vests either.

In fact, what we do has many features that would seem to many like punishments.

• We spend our time locked in badly-maintained buildings.
  
• With lawyers.
  
• We can't wear comfortable clothing.

Must be the unconditional love and respect of the public promise of a laminated certificate for twenty years service that keeps us coming back. Or maybe just the biscuits.