It's truly been a week for pigs, both of the genuine swine variety and of the human political one.

It's already been a bad year for our actual pig friends as first swine flu swept Mexico and now threatens to sweep the globe. One major contributing factor in the case of the Mexican outbreak has been said to be the poor, unhygienic state of pig farming facilities owned by multinational US pork corporations there. In fact, the first reported case of swine flu was reported near the location of one such farm in central Mexico. Locals were said to have complained repeatedly in the Mexican case of a foul smelling stench that wafted through their community and complaints to local agricultural officials largely went un-heeded.

Until this week, we in New Zealand didn't think ourselves to be in the same league. That was until a very rare piece of investigative journalism appeared on TV One's 'Close Up' programme exposing the appalling farming practises of a North Island pig farm. Led on by campaigners from the animal rights group SAFE (Save Animals from Exploitation) and accompanied by former New Zealand Pork Board promotional front man, comedian Mike King, the TV crew un-earthed what were very unhygienic and crowded conditions on this farm. King, the former industry front man, was sickened by what he saw in terms of pigs living in cramped cages, some with their tails docked off for good measure. Furthermore, the level of excrement found in the shed was un-healthy and above safe industry standards.

The owner of the pig farm, a former Pork Board chairperson himself, stated to the TV One crew that the pigs had been excited by the animal rights campaigners on the raid and that they didn't usually behave in this way and that the picture painted of life on his farm wasn't a true one. I think the pig farmer concerned was probably (to use a good pig pun) telling a porky.

What this incident also showed up was the probable lack of farm sector inspectors employed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF.) If we are to continue to enjoy an image as a clean, green country that prides itself on sending hygienically approved meat for export to other countries, then it is essential that more agricultural inspectors are appointed to monitor farming standards, particularly in industries like pig farming. Any moves by government to cut the number of inspectors would be dangerous as they would be an easy enough workforce to prune in a time of recession and anyway some farmers, as conservative small businesspeople, are inclined towards distrusting any representative of the state sniffing around on their land. However, the Nats would be better advised at this time when we need all the export revenue we can generate to keep our farming sector under close inspection so that slack farmers and multinationals don't endanger our reputation and people's wellbeing either here or abroad.

And what of the human political pigs who have been feeding at the financial perks trough in the UK Parliament? Over the last fortnight, revelations have been published in the British right-wing newspaper 'The Daily Telegraph' of how MP's have rorted the political expenses system.

Various Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat as well as MPs from other smaller parties have all been found feeding away at the public expense account through claiming for things like new TVs, stereos, mortgage payments, pet food, alcohol, gardening services and even for the installation of duck ponds and moats. While MPs do have legitimate expenses arising from having to maintain both homes in their electorates and in London itself, the purposes for which reimbursement of expenses have been claimed are, in essence, a very real stretch. People have rightly become angered that at a time when the UK is experiencing it's worst recession in 70 years that politicians have been claiming for things that most people work hard to pay for. It really is callous, for example, to have MPs claiming for new furniture and entertainment systems when ordinary people have to pay such things off on hire purchase without any assistance at all.

Quite rightly, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced a series of hasty reforms to the system including the independent management of claims in order to quell public discontent ahead of local and European elections next month. However, this will not be enough for many Britons who are currently struggling in the recession and they are expected to more heavily punish the governing Labour Party (and to a far lesser extent the Conservatives and other parties) at those polls.

The one good thing to come out of this is that Labour and the Conservatives (as well as some other parties) are dealing to some of their most errant MPs who have really had some big feeding time at the trough with Labour threatening to de-select the worst offenders while the Conservatives have already asked at least two of their MPs to 'retire' at the next general election which is due to be held next year. The Labour Government has also stood down one of its ministers, Shahid Malik and there is the possibility of more to come.

The biggest defender of the political pig fest at Westminster has been House of Commons Speaker Michael Martin who, in a move not seen for some 300 years, has resigned from the speakership. It was only right that his scalp was claimed as he continued to defend MPs rights to 'bring home the bacon' in this way.

The crisis in Britain must also be giving our parliamentarians food for thought. Inappropriate claiming of expenses for second homes has occurred here too with, under the Labour Government, former ministers Marian Hobbs and Philida Bunkle both falling foul of then PM Helen Clark in 2001 for claiming for second home mortgage payment and re-decoration expenses when they both had their electorate and residential bases in Wellington. And who remembers Jonathan Hunt's profligacy with taxi chits in the early 1990s?

There is room for improvement in this country too with former PMs and their spouses, for example, able to claim one free return international trip and enjoy free domestic air travel for life. This clearly needs to stop as no ordinary worker in this country gets such perks and anyway most people find it difficult to save for their retirement, let alone fork out for an airfare to see family within New Zealand.

So politically this has been the week of the pig. The real pigs should be able to live in reasonable dignity while some of the real political pigs (especially in the UK) have to stop believing that they should live in dignity on the back of the taxpayer.