A disgusted user of the TES online staffroom thinks so. “A nice use of my subscription ... beyond irony,” says “Oktoberfist” witheringly. “Look at it another way,” replies “Lancashire Rose”. “It was probably cheaper to fly than to go by train or road.” What? Chartering a jet would set you back Pounds 5,000, another user points out.

But then these two start to squabble about more important matters than union funds and poverty:“If you ARE a member of the NASUWT you would know that the backslash in “NASUWT” was dropped over 10 years ago!!” exclaims Lancashire Rose. “A back-slash out of place is hardly a cause for the overuse of an exclamation is it?” grumbles Oktoberfist.

The Diary hates to spoil a fight but would like to point out there is no truth in the rumour that the NASUWT has adopted a Bono-esque approach to travel. “We did buy lots of seats on a plane to Edinburgh on Saturday morning because there was an executive meeting the previous night,” said a NASUWT spokesman helpfully.