[Margaret Pilkington]

It isn't how mild the word was, it is the connotation behind the word...the man was infering that the policeman was of lesser importance....and he was denigrating him in this way. Who is to say that the policeman would not have made a better MP than Andrew Mitchell...had he had the chance or the inclination.

I don't think we need to be able to do the job of an MP to criticise Andrew Mitchell - he was being rude because he hadn't got his way...chucked his dummy....but this isn't why people want him to resign...they want him to resign because he isn't man enough to 'fess up' and tell the truth. He wants us to believe the policeman is a liar.