Few people dislike this Labour government more than I do. Few are more appalled by its deceit, arrogance and incompetence. Few want to see the back of it more quickly. The next election can’t come soon enough. So, I totally get why pubs, particularly in rural areas, are banning Labour MPs. It’s entirely understandable that pub owners, with their livelihoods at stake, are refusing to serve the very people who have made their lives so intolerable. Why should these MPs have the privilege of a pint when their party is increasing business rates by an average of 78% over the next three years, putting an intolerable strain on locals throughout the country?

Add the burden of national insurance, minimum wage and energy price rises, and you have a perfect storm, with many pubs having no option but to close for good. Local communities will never be the same again. Thanks Labour. No wonder “No Labour MPs” signs are going up faster than a drink-up after last orders. I’d be tempted to do exactly the same, if I ran a pub.

Yet, despite all that, banning people from pubs, even Labour MPs, however cathartic and satisfying it might be, is a bad idea. Because it’s exactly the sort of tactic that the Left would use, and it reeks of cancellation. If the Right stands for one thing above all else, it must be freedom of speech and thought – even for appalling Labour MPs.

One of the main causes of our insidious culture war is intolerance of a different point of view. The Left have been at it for years, with “No Tories!” lines on advertisements for student flat-shares and “Never kissed a Tory” T-shirts doing a roaring trade at Labour conferences.

Conservatives attending their own conference are frequently spat at and abused by far-left protesters. Nigel Farage and others were de-banked purely because of their political views.

It’s tempting for those of us on the Right to respond in kind. Of course it is. If you hit me, I’ll hit you back. But that leads to ludicrous escalation, and will eventually result in shops, restaurants, pubs, banks, you name it, only serving people whose views they approve of. Do you want to get to that point? I certainly don’t. But it’s a big danger.

In any case there’s a better way, and one that remains true to the Right’s belief in freedom of speech. Invite these Labour MPs into the pub, and force them to justify themselves. Show them the strength of local anger. Demonstrate what happens when government policy robs local pubs to pay local scroungers. Don’t just use anger, but reason and logic too.

If I were a Labour MP, I’d be far more afraid of going into my local to defend my government’s absurd and cruel policies in front of a bunch of livid regulars than being banned. The latter would irritate me, but the former would absolutely terrify me.

Given Labour’s record of outrageous, shameless flip-flopping, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the government backs down on business rates for rural pubs, just like it did with the winter fuel allowance and inheritance tax on family farms.

I certainly hope so. But it’s far more likely to do so if its foot soldiers are forced to confront the ruinous consequences of its policies. So, come on then, let’s show them.