IT may well be shown that Sir Malcolm Rifkind and Jack Straw were not in breach of parliamentary rules when they bragged to undercover journalists about how their influence could be bought by a fictitious private company.

But Sir Malcolm at least has heard the mood music of the country, and felt the icy blast from Downing Street, and done the right thing by standing down as a Conservative MP and chairman of the Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee.

Perception goes a very long way in politics and Sir Malcolm and Labour stalwart Mr Straw have fuelled the public scepticism about politicians which is so damaging to democracy in this country.

For his part, Sir Malcolm told the investigative team from Channel 4 and the Daily Telegraph that, as an MP, he wasn't particularly busy. He had lots of free time to go walking and reading and, therefore, to take on other jobs to keep him occupied.

That was perhaps his biggest crime because it sells the job of an MP a long way short. If the job is done properly, surely there is always work to be done; always a constituent to help; always a local campaign to fight for.

The hole he had dug for himself became deeper when he went on to say that he wasn't "employed" as an MP, and then that the £67,000 salary paid to MPs wasn't enough.

There is a valid argument about whether MPs should be paid more, given their responsibility and the need to attract high-calibre candidates. But that argument is shot to bits when a long-standing MP such as Sir Malcolm says he doesn't have enough to do.

It all adds to the widely held view that too many politicians are out of touch with the reality for the vast majority of ordinary people who are working harder and harder to make ends meet on a lot less than £67,000.

Sir Malcolm may not have broken the rules but, with an election around the corner, an MP who had told the world he didn't have enough to do, that £67,000 a year wasn't enough, and that his contacts were for hire, was unlikely to find many sources of support.