When the Sun splashed on Plebgate there was a strange moment of unity on left and right – both agreed that the filth were fitting Andrew Mitchell up. The former because it confirmed all their anti-police prejudice, the latter because they would always believe one of their peers over the account of – well – a pleb.

I never bought Mitchell’s story. Not just because it has been said of him that he would not easily be mistaken for a nice man. But also because the staff on the gates of No 10 were former colleagues. I could not understand the circumstances under which a cabinet minister would bully and swear at staff. And the strangest thing about Mitchell’s whole story was that he accepted he had sworn at the cops. To him that was perfectly okay, to me that was the clincher – it was a straightforward sacking offence. But Mitchell successfully – well for a while at least – made it about whether or not he said ‘pleb’.

Well, as we say in Scotland, he kens noo – and so do we. At a cost of some £3m he has had what went on at the Downing Street gates made absolutely clear. It turns out Mitchell was at the time – and since – an utter cad.

And let us give three cheers for the Police Federation. Like all good unions they backed the weak against the strong and helped PC 88 literally to speak truth to power. This is the reason why millions of ordinary British workers join a union – to even up the odds. It is a victory for all of us to see a bullying, arrogant Tory brought low. But it is one the labour movement should particularly savour. There is power in a union.

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Another week, another invocation of Sunder’s Law – only promise what you can do on immigration. This time the villain is David Cameron. He has vowed – again – to slash migration into the UK. This time the PM’s target are the masses that swarm over our border to claim benefits.

Now there is no point in arguing facts with Cameron – he knows as well as we do that the search for ‘benefit tourists’ is a snark hunt. They simply do not exist.

Equally, there is no mileage in pointing out that migration in the European Union is not really driving numbers either. Jonathan Portes has written in detail in the Guardian today explaining that it is the 170 thousand coming from outside the EU that are driving up net migration – which is a good thing as they are driving growth too.

No, let us go straight to the most quixotic element of the Cameron argument – that he can bar EU nationals from social security. Normally, I would just say good luck with that and point out that immigration policy has been in the hands of the High Court for decades.

But there is a new argument that Cameron now uses. It is one he has borrowed from IDS – which should perhaps have set alarm bells ringing. This goes – we can ban EU citizens from receiving Universal Credit (UC) because it is a benefit supporting people getting into work. (No, I do not get it either).

Well, there are two objections. The obvious one of competence – UC is a benefit that does not actually exist except in a handful of Potemkin sites. Also there are no plans in existence for the full caseload to be on by 2020 at the earliest. Then there is the other slightly more fundamental one – does Cameron have a clue at all about what makes up UC? It replaces six means-tested benefits and tax credits. So, no contribution test. Also, in it will be a replacement for Child Tax Credit. What might that be? A plain and simple poverty alleviation benefit paid for children.

So, to put it bluntly Cameron thinks you can deter EU migrants by threatening to force their children into poverty. I hold no hope in the current toxic debate on immigration that any parliamentarian will suggest that a policy that forced even one child in Britain into poverty is wrong. However, UK and EU law and UK Treaty obligations are firmer things. It is too the Supreme Court we must look to see this abomination struck down.

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Something very important happened this week. The Labour party changed its policy on devolution of income tax to the Scottish Parliament. We are now in favour of it. And this was not some squalid behind the scenes negotiation. It was not even a negotiation – because policy was changed by a speech given in Scotland by Jim Murphy. Asked if he had cleared what he said with the two Eds, Jim replied that they would read it in the paper like everyone else. A proud and independent start for the new Scottish Labour party leader. Except, of course, Jim is just a candidate. But he is already setting the pace. Leading is, in the end, about getting out in front and staying there.

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John McTernan is former political secretary at 10 Downing Street and was director of communications for former prime minister of Australia Julia Gillard. He writes The Last Word column on Progress and tweets @johnmcternan

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Photo: DFID