Cyril Smith and The Paedophile Liberation Front

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception

Smith's enormous working-class appeal left the Director of Public Prosecutions worried that the Rochdale MP might be able to do something remarkable if he went to trial - win public sympathy for paedophilia. The Paedophile Information Exchange sprung up at the time, seeking to reclassify paedophilia as 'intergenerational relationships'. As has been exposed, they were affiliated to the National Council of Civil Liberties (NCCL), now known as Liberty, and would pop up frequently in the media. Former Blair ministers Patricia Hewitt (right) and Harriet Harman (centre), plus current shadow minister Jack Dromey (left), were all recently identified as senior figures in the NCCL when it was linked to PIE

Knighted by Steel and eulogised by Clegg: Cyril Smith and the indelible shame of the Liberal Party

Within the Liberal Party, many did not like Smith. But they were prepared to tolerate his dark side because he had the electoral Midas touch.

'I've come to examine you': From bogus medical examinations to punishment beatings, how paedophile Cyril Smith used his powerful public image to abuse boys

One of the most shocking elements of his story is how the truth was known to the police and in Westminster, yet concealed from the wider public.