Also, to be fair to Labour, there are simply very few political points worth scoring at the moment. The national mood is, at this moment in time at least, seemingly all about a sense of pulling together rather than the usual fisticuffs of political brawling.

Now of course once it all blows over and the serious questions can not only be asked but also qualified answers given, then it will be a different kettle of fish but for the time being, Starmer is probably getting far more right than wrong.

And let us not forget that as matters stand Johnson is probably the most secure politicians in the Western World. Huge majority, no internal opposition worthy of being labelled as such and with no risk of any kind of election for well in excess of 4 and half years.

In short, he can do whatever he wants. Starmer needs to pick his battles and timing is crucial. Has to play the long, long game here with his biggest issue in the next 12-18 months being those within his own party. Johnson can simply ignore him but those behind him will be looking to wield a variety of knives to stab him with. And it is going to get vicious on that front.

"The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command." - 1984 - George Orwell.

Momentum have to be unliberated for him to succeed.
Joe public will like him if his manifesto and ideas are written by him. They will see through ones that are written by a n other.

if you'd seen the interview you might be as subjective as me, I was speaking more in terms of up and comers and future leaders - like Lawson, Lamont, Mellor and Major all started off as chief secretary to the treasury - certain appointments can be revealing, with the care home crisis I was interested to see who he chose to speak for the issue, the shadow health sec Ashworth is the one caught on the phone saying Corbyn was a disaster pre the election, he has to peddle the party bullsh*t but says pertinent intellligent things every time I see him, the other was just talking off a script, Starmer's obviously, and it wasn't very convincing nor the first time, so I hope as a Labour voter that I'm wrong and it's not a revealing appointment.

I’ve said before I think Matov could write this stuff for money. Could probably adjust styles for the audience/readership.

COYP

In the midst of all the drama, one decision made by Starmer last week is, I think, incredibly significant.

He came out and renounced Labour's previous position on Kashmir, which was to condemn the Indian government's actions there.

Now it is clear he did so to appease Indian Labour voters, many of whom didn't vote for Corbyn specifically because of this reason.

This may seem incredibly trivial, but actually, it is a clear indication of his political instincts, and even as a sceptic of his, it surprised me.

Kashmir is one of the largest human rights issues in the world. People have been arrested without trial, communication has been blacked out, and the Indian military have been shown to be committing numerous atrocities throughout the region.

Now you could argue that it isn't Labour's position to take a stand on these things and winning power is more important than far off conflicts. But remember, Starmer was a human rights lawyer. He, more than most, will know what is happening in Kashmir, and his decision to ignore it must have been done in spite of his knowledge.

It raises the question: if the human rights lawyer is willing to overlook human rights abuses, what does he actually stand for? Until that is answered, no number of breezy dispatches of Johnson at PMQs is likely to win poeple over.

If punk ever happened I'd be preaching the law, instead of listenin to Lydon lecture BBC4

Do you think performing well in public appearances equates to good performance? I think the two are increasingly conflated, rightly or wrongly. Example being the Chief Medical Offer who would seem to be a good fit for the job, considering he’s a virologist. But he was mugged off for having a crap haircut and terrible presentation skills.

(He does need a better haircut, to be fair.)

Vive le Roy!