The speeding up of turnover rates has almost nothing to do with shifts to the right or left, and much more to do with wider cultural change in Parliament.
The number of finalists appears to be the result of the local association pushing back against CCHQ’s attempts to influence the selection.
Many are choosing to depart at an age which would have been very unusual in earlier times, and each gives Johnson a new chance to reshape the parliamentary party.
The Government’s combination of pro-shale rhetoric and highly restrictive regulation could almost be calculated to please nobody.
“For too long allegations of sexual assault or rape have been rather dismissed…the courts will decide the validity of those claims.”
Plus: The Chief Whip’s swift transformation from Francis Urquhart to Mr Bean. And: why I can’t bring myself to vote Tory in the local elections.
Though there may have been extenuating circumstances – namely, contradictory instructions from Number Ten and the Whips respectively.
Several Ministers helped to see off the Government’s best hope of avoiding a full-on crisis in the Party – and perhaps of saving Brexit too.
The words of Gordon Brown to Tony Blair echo in our ears. “There is nothing that you could say to me now that I could ever believe”.
Trashing last Friday’s event is doubtless fun for Conservative commentators, but not the right course at all for the Conservative Party.
Britain has a proud environmental record. Here is another opportunity to lead the world.
The school strikers have a point, and we ought to listen – not least because we have a great story to tell about what Conservative governments have done.