Ben and Catherine Mullany were tragically murdered during their honeymoon on the island of Antigua. It makes your blood run cold to think about what happened, especially during the 20 minutes from the first scream to the last. (Why didn’t the person who heard the first scream do something?)

It makes me consider some of these idyllic holiday spots in some of the poorer countries in the world. I was thinking about going to the Carribbean but decided against it. I’d been warned by a friend not to go to Jamaica, and if I did, not to venture outside the compound. Erm … if you think about this, it’s like holidaying in Afghanistan or something, isn’t it? You are required to pay about £1k each to go to an island where you have to stay inside your compound that has no proper policing – shown by the appeal for help to Scotland Yard and possibly the FBI. They need help with gangs, allegedly – what, just suddenly? The parents also took the dangerous decision to transfer the stricken Ben back to the UK possibly because the hospital was not well provisioned (unless they knew he was going to die and wanted him to die at home). Hardly feels you with confidence, does it?

Following the shambolic performance of the Portuguese Keystone cops in the Madeleine McCann investigation, it makes you wonder why people go abroad because at the first sign of trouble, you’re IN trouble. When I was in Portugal, the holiday firm that I rented the villa from advises that if you are caught speeding, not to hand over your driving license or passport if the police ask for it. It infers a corrupt police force – definitely demonstrated by the way information leaked into the press concerning the Madeleine investigation. That simple instruction disturbed my Mrs no end the moment we got there.

It’s my opinion that countries should be rated according to their lawlessness, so people can make an informed decision about where they go, or at the very least made aware of things to avoid before they leave. Holiday brochures should carry a security rating for each accomodation as well. My Portuguese villa was on an unnamed road and the villa next door was ransacked whilst we were there. How could I have called the police to help? The Mullanys were staying in a “don’t leave your compound” accomodation, right over the back of the property, separated by a 6 foot wall with no security cameras – in monetary terms, this was likely very expensive, but was similar to staying in the Baghdad Hilton. You should know this before you buy – it’s a fantastic incentive for people selling holidays to get it right.