Steadfast rebel wins apology

Labour rebel Helen Clark, MP for Peterborough, who voted against the higher education bill during its second reading in the Commons, has won an apology and £5,000 in damages from The Daily Express .

The newspaper had dared to question her rebelliousness, suggesting that she had dishonoured her election promise to oppose top-up fees and was likely to repeat the move.

A later article suggested that the newspaper had scared her into changing her voting intentions. The case went to court, where The Daily Express accepted that the allegations were untrue and apologised. The newspaper was also ordered to pay Ms Clark's legal costs.