right-thinking people would expect a much lighter sentence in the second case. Rape is always wrong, but not always equally culpable." Helmer added that, in this case, "the victim surely shares a part of the responsibility, if only for establishing reasonable expectations in her boyfriend's mind". What a loathsome thing, and by a then-member of my own party. I spoke out to condemn it; the party distanced itself, as the Republican Party is now doing from Akin. But we did not withdraw the whip, as we undoubtedly should have done. A year on from Helmer's remarks, the Justice Department has no women in the most senior roles; it stumbled both on trying to grant anonymity to men accused of rape, a Lib Dem idea, and in Ken Clarke's own unfortunate comments about rape. I hope (and expect) that the Prime Minister will use the opportunity of the reshuffle to promote some of the talented female lawyers on his benches into the department that governs rape, sexual trafficking and other crimes against women. Women are fed up with male politicians diminishing, dismissing and demeaning the horrific crime of rape. Some politicians know it, too. It's no wonder Mitt Romney and the Republican Party were going all-out to persuade Todd Akin to withdraw from the ballot yesterday. Not only is the Senate seat winnable, but Missouri is a must-win state. With Akin, they would be in real trouble with women voters. "Akin is right," one tweet said, "the female body does have