Never underestimate Boris Johnson

Much of the political class is still in a state of shock. Many are tempted to echo Lord Melbourne: ‘What all the wise men promised has not happened and what all the damned fools said would happen has come to pass.’

This was an extraordinary election because underneath all the stress it was a very boring affair. From the beginning, the polls predicted a sizeable outright Tory victory. But after 2017, no-one was ready to trust the polls. Among Tories, though well concealed, there was also a widespread fear that Boris would implode. That did not happen. Instead, everyone stuck to the script.

To the very end, a number of high-minded Tories were unhappy. Surely the electorate would grow restive at the lack of intellectual content? That did not happen either, at least on any significant scale. This must count as one of the most controlled and successful electoral strategies in British history.