Despite the best efforts of some, Remembrance Day is not, and never has been, a political affair. It is purely what its name suggests: an act to honour and commemorate those who have fallen in conflicts across the world, and to raise money to help survivors and their families.

To hear, then, that thugs have abused, spat at and even assaulted people selling poppies for the Royal British Legion is nothing short of deeply offensive.

If disagreement with current British foreign policy is behind any of these deplorable acts, then the perpetrators are not just behaving disgustingly, but they are also very sadly misguided.

Many British servicemen and women have lost their lives or been seriously injured in recent and ongoing conflicts, and the annual British Legion appeal quite rightly is about them and their families.

But it is largely about giving just a few moments to remember those who have died in the two major world wars that cost millions of lives. Wearing a poppy is not a tub-thumping statement of support for war; quite the opposite. It is about respect for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of their country, and a reflection on the nature of war, with its huge human cost.

That two young girls were told they should not be selling poppies because they were of Asian origin is even more twisted and confused, and the report that sellers were approached by a gang wanting to steal their collection tins is yet another sad indictment of the modern day.

Wearing a poppy is a very personal tribute that more and more people are following, even as we get further and further away from the two world wars. As such, those who pledge never to forget far outnumber those idiots who see it as an opportunity for causing trouble.