You’d think that MPs of all people would’ve learnt the very fundamental public relations lessons by now.

Yet after a story emerged from the Palace of Westminster, in which the House of Commons banned a beer called Top Totty from its members bar, it would seem that for many politicians the PR penny still hasn’t yet dropped.

The story unfolded when parliamentary stickler for political correctness and Labour MP Kate Green lodged a complaint about the beer on the grounds that its name was offensive to women.

She clearly didn’t read the PR script and see that a ban would have precisely the opposite of the intended effect, as the move quickly sparked a war of words amongst MPs and soon thereafter courted the attention of the national press.

Slater’s, a small independent brewery based in Stafford, then suddenly found itself at the centre of media attention, with several national newspapers covering the story.

And it wasn’t just the name of the beer that prompted such a strong reaction from proponents of the ban – who have been described in some political quarters as dour-faced sanctimonious killjoys with little or no sense of humour.

The pump plate that accompanies the beer has also set tongues wagging, as it features an image of a half-naked buxom blonde, decked out in just a dicky bow, pair of bunny ears and bikini.

But as PR practitioners who have local connections with Slater’s brewery, we reckon the company won’t mind the controversy one little bit, as we can only see a healthy growth in future sales on the back of such widespread publicity.