Hoondog has his day...

I began to wonder what on earth could have been up Geoff Hoon's nose that required such an effort to dislodge.

He rubbed, stroked and poked furiously all in the space of a few moments as he was being asked when the decision to go to war in Iraq was taken.

Some might say this is what is called "displacement activity" – the result of a person battling two conflicting instincts which leave them unsure of what to do or say.

Of course it may just be that Hoon had early hay fever, because when he was asked another toughie, he blinked about 20 times in the space of 20 seconds.

Click to read the Evening Post Parliamentary Correspondent's take on Hoon.