Apparently, the minister had some doubts as to the guilt of Dreyfus, and did not wish to publish his arrest until the inquiry furnished decisive proofs.

And sensible ministers would not wish to be informed (aka 'plausible deniability')

The alternative, if any senior ministers wished to resign, was the resignation of the whole Cabinet.

A parliamentary minister, Philippe Séguin, wished to create a French-language equivalent.

The affair did not turn out as the minister wished.

But it is a sign of the times that a Latin American minister even wishes to make such a boast.

But the acting Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, is trying to win an election and may not wish to appear soft.

If the prime ministers and foreign ministers do not wish to show leadership, then we ourselves must do so.

If ministers wish to stop a news story, they must ask the courts for an injunction - they have no power to make a direct order.

With banana skins like VAT on fuel and the economy some ministers may soon wish they too were on their sick bed.