FAIR play to Oxford City Council and licensing officer Julian Alison for confessing that he did not realise there was a religious aspect to the Passion Play planned for Cowley Road.

Clearly in this case a mistake was made and it was an embarrassing one that affected a community project.

Too many councils would have closed ranks and waited for the storm to blow out, probably tut-tutting at the temerity of the public and media to question it.

But in this case Oxford City Council has been open. Mistakes get made but it is usually how an organisation reacts that is the true measure of its integrity.

And, given the nature of today, surely this mistake can be forgiven.