A chance to reflect on this morning’s Public Administration Select Committee meeting where we were looking into the circumstances surrounding the elevation of Michael Ashcroft to the peerage.

We had before us Sir Hayden Phillips, the top mandarin responsible for waving Ashcroft’s peerage through, and Baroness Brenda Dean, a member of the now defunct Political Honours Scrutiny Committee which had to decide on whether Ashcroft was a fit and proper person to wear ermine.

What did I learn?

William Hague knew that the terms of the solemn and binding undertaking given by Michael Ashcroft had been renegotiated on his behalf by the Conservative Chief Whip, James Arbuthnot.

Hague knew that his agent, James Arbuthnot, had told Hayden Phillips, that he (Arbuthnot) did “not believe that the question of domicile is or can be relevant to the fulfilment of the undertaking”.

So Hague was brazenly working to decouple the issue of UK domicile from the solemn and binding undertaking.

As Ashcroft admits in his statement of 1 March 2010, the first undertaking to become a “permanent resident” had morphed into a “long term resident”. The difference meant Ashcroft could escape UK tax on his worldwide income. He was allowed to retain non dom status.

This second undertaking, allowing Ashcroft to escape full UK tax on his worldwide earnings, remained secret for a decade.

On 12 July 2000, Arbuthnot, on behalf of Hague, signed off agreement on what the second undertaking meant, paving the way for Ashcroft’s vanity peerage.

Arbuthnot wrote: “I confirm that I agree with your understanding of the position (that UK domicile was not required before elevation to the peerage) and that the Leader of the Opposition is satisfied that the action adequately meets the terms of Michael Ashcroft’s undertaking to take up permanent residence in the UK.”

The use of the word "permanent" by Arbuthnot was muddying the waters. Hague knew he had got what he wanted for his friend, Michael Ashcroft.