Does anyone actually like Reform?

‘Alastair, it’s been absolutely fascinating talking to you. Thank you for your honesty.’ And thus ended Kirsty Young’s interview with Alastair Campbell, broadcast to the nation on BBC Radio 4 on Monday. This was part of the series Young Again, in which Kirsty interviews left-of-centre people, agrees with them and makes them feel better about themselves.

It is difficult to know how she could have been more fawning in this particular episode, short of performing what the Daily Telegraph used to refer to as ‘an obscene act’ on the psychotic former spin doctor. Later, Campbell tweeted his agreement with the analysis that Young was a ‘brilliant’ interviewer. The aforementioned ‘honesty’ to which we were privileged consisted of Campbell admitting, quite openly and without caveat, that given his time working for Tony Blair again, he really wouldn’t do anything very different.