Do you remember when Sunday evening telly used to be about curling up in front of Esther Rantzen and a couple of saucily shaped carrots? How times have changed.

Last night we got Samantha Cameron, offering tender reflections of husband Dave: hands on dad, devoted spouse and , er, next possible Prime Minister.

With Hobson’s Choice as the subtext to the rapidly approaching election, it’s possible that come the great day most voters will stick on a blindfold and play ‘dip-dip-dip’ with the ballot paper. That’s if we can be bothered to tear ourselves away from the washing up.

But which halfwit thought that deploying the cynical, insulting and increasingly desperate strategy of using the wives of our potential leaders to entice disaffected voters would be the carrot needed to pledge support? It’s a tactic clearly aimed at the female electorate and frankly it’s madness.

Do these deluded spin doctors really think our votes are based on the shade of Sam Cam’s lipstick or her emoting about her ickle Tory Boy? Or the fact that Sarah Brown has already introduced her husband twice at Labour party conferences. If anything Mrs Brown’s fondness for ill-fitting tubi grip skirts is more of a distraction. But then, I’m a girl.

Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, the Spanish-born wife of Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, has been less voluble, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she pitches up somewhere telling us about his dab hand at rustling up romantic suppers (after all he did once confess to sleeping with over 30 women before he got married...)

There’s no doubting that politics has become a more family business with little Browns and Blairs toddling round Downing Street, breastfeeding MPs in the Commons and the contemptuous push for all female short lists. But where have our Parliamentarians been all this time? If we women are winning the equality battle in terms of work and progress, do we really need Governmental sweethearts like Sam Cameron to get our vote. As own goals go, it’s pretty spectacular.

We make our minds up based on the candidates – not their domestic baggage. If we’d have known what a gaffe-prone whinger Cherie Blair was going to be, Tone would still be sitting it out on the back benches.

And though we want them to be human, leaders’ spouses can actually be a liability. (Yes, that’s a bonjour to President Sarkozy and his allegedly unfaithful supermodel missus).

We want our leaders to be human, but we don’t need the below stairs revelations of a trophy wife. When Michelle Obama famously revealed to Glamour magazine that her husband was so “stinky and snory” in the morning their children wouldn’t go near him, I had to go and lie down in a darkened room.

Disenchantment with our politicians is at an all-time low, with an electorate still reeling from the expenses scandal and the fact our party leaders are about as inspiring as soggy chips and flat beer.

What we voters – men and women – need are truthful, workable pledges to fix our economy, our health service and our education system. Trotting out a glossy toostie who adores her husband just won’t cut it.

No wonder Mrs Thatcher did so well

Find new ways to shame these selfish parkers

ANYONE who has returned to their car to discover that tell-tale piece of yellow plastic flapping under the wipers will know the gut-wrenching feeling of getting a parking ticket.

That is, of course, unless you’re one of the mysterious cohort of wealthy businessmen who – as exclusively revealed in the MEN – repeatedly park illegally in central Mancehster because they can more than swallow the financial penalty.

Two of the worst offenders were fined 110 times each in the space of 12 months – notching up fines totalling £6,000.

Out here in the real world, not many of us would go out of our way to be £30 out of pocket. However this exclusive group of serial offenders seem to also wilfully ignore disabled parking slots, loading bays and double yellows so that they can treat the city centre as an expedient car park. Behaviour which is at best inconvenient and at worst dangerous.

Manchester city council’s response is pretty pathetic – claiming they have no powers to tackle repeat offender as long as they pay up. Clearly existing fines are a paltry sum to the super-rich, so repeat offences should be hit with steeply escalating penalties. Parking in disabled bays is particularly despicable. Perhaps slapping on a name and shame sticker, stating “lazy, selfish and able bodied” might do the trick too.