Liz Truss was a conviction politician

As an erstwhile Brexit-voting academic, I’m used to being at odds with those around me. But in feeling troubled at the news of Liz Truss’s resignation yesterday, it seems I’m now in a minority of one. Truss had to go, of course. Her failings have been so well documented they hardly need repeating. Her lack of political acumen was perhaps most shocking: Truss utterly failed to read the mood of the Conservative party, the nation and the financial markets on every single one of her 44 days in office. But still, I have a pang of regret that she is on her way out.

Truss’s stilted performances failed to inspire confidence. So frequently did the word ‘wooden’ prefix Liz, it became difficult to distinguish political commentary from the Ikea catalogue. But everyone knew this; indeed, some even saw it as her strength. Rather than being criticised for her lack of charisma, Truss has, over the years, been feted and promoted for her peculiar brand of Thatcher imitation.