This is Brexit’s La La Land moment

From Venezuela to Zimbabwe, the noise that defines failing states is the wail. It’s not our fault, their leaders cry. We are the victims of a foreign conspiracy, fifth columnists and saboteurs. The most obvious and least discussed consequence of last night’s capitulation by the British Prime Minister to the right of her party is that the Tories are building a conspiracy theory of their own, as they prepare to whine and blame everyone but themselves for the crisis they have brought on Britain. If it is teaching us nothing else, Brexit has at least shown us that ‘taking back control’ never means taking on responsibility.

The events of this week ought to have stripped the last illusions from innocents who thought the British ruling class retained a residual competence: that someone, somewhere knows what they are doing. The right compelled the Government to reopen an agreement it assured us could not be reopened, and to threaten the Irish peace agreement, the one act of statesmanship politicians from the previous generation could look on with pride.

The sight of Theresa May voting against her own deal was merely an appetiser.