VETERAN East Lancashire MP Peter Pike yesterday rather shamefacedly chaired a House of Commons debate on the United Nation's Charter on the rights of the child.

Despite the view of campaigners that smacking was wrong he had to acknowledge that he had on occasion "clipped'' his two daughters. The Labour backbencher said: "I had to be strictly neutral as I chaired the debate. I'm not in favour of a total ban on smacking, although I do think that there should be stricter rules on what is "reasonable chastisement'. I'm afraid to say on one or two occasions I did give my two daughters -- Carol and Jane who are both in their thirties now -- a clip when they misbehaved. There are times when you have to give children a clip when they are being naughty or dangerous but it must, at all times, be in moderation and not deferred and in cold blood.

"However, I'm sure the real problem is being a politician. Politicians make bad parents. My children often used to say they had to make an appointment to see me when they were young. But they seem quite happy now, so I can't have got everything wrong.''

PENDLE MP Gordon Prentice recently visited Finland with a Parliamentary delegation -- not the most exciting of Foreign destinations. However, while there he met the former Miss Finland and later Miss Universe. He seemed to think this made up for the cold and lack of glamour of the Scandinavian country and former Soviet client state.

BLACKBURN MP Jack Straw was recently in the Iranian capital Teheran trying to shore up the International coalition against terrorism as the row over possible US/UK military action against Iraq grew.

On his return he popped into his local Tesco, near his South London home.

A woman shopper came up to him and said: "What are you doing here? I thought you were in Teheran?''

The Foreign Secretary replied: "I was in Teheran now I'm in Tesco's.''