The public have a right to know as much as they can about Boris Johnson’s character

The frontrunner to become the next prime minister refused point blank to answer questions about his private life at the Birmingham hustings, but the people are entitled to know what kind of person he is

A balance always has to be struck between the right to privacy and the public interest. In the case of Boris Johnson and his argument on Thursday night with Carrie Symonds, his partner, there are two aspects to the public interest.

One is the concern about domestic abuse. At what point is it legitimate for a neighbour or passerby to intervene? We cannot fault Mr Johnson and Ms Symonds’s neighbours for knocking on their door or for calling the police on receiving no reply. Another neighbour who heard the disturbance told the BBC that they thought it warranted the police being called.

In a statement, the police said: “Police attended and spoke to all occupants of the address, who were all safe and well. There were no offences or concerns apparent to the officers and there was no cause for police action.”