IT is impossible to believe that what John Forrester felt for Claire Bennett amounted to love.

By his actions he proved otherwise. Real love means sacrifice; it means putting the welfare of others first.

Had Forrester's feelings for his pupil been authentic and profound, he would have walked away from her before anything inappropriate happened.

He would have informed the school management and then changed his job. He would have done so because he is an intelligent man.

In twenty-first century Britain we do not tolerate child brides nor excuse crazed lovers in the mould of Romeo and Juliet. By walking away, Forrester would have tested the depth of his feelings and - crucially - avoided harming the object of them.

A real man should have insisted on no contact between them.

This voluntary exile should have lasted until after she had left school, and then, only then, if their feelings remained as intense, should they have contemplated a relationship.

One does not have to be a cynic to believe it improbable their love would survive such a test.

Instead, what he did was selfishly exploit a vulnerable child. His inability to resist the madness of the moment exposed his calibre as a human being.

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