What a PM’s podium says about them

Farewell, Truss’s twisty lectern. Last week in Downing Street Rishi Sunak used one with a straight column. If he follows recent Tory tradition, he’ll have one made to his own design, paid for by the party (£2,000-£4,000 a pop) and loaned to the government.

Each lectern (from the Latin legere, ‘to read’) has sent a message. David Cameron’s was intended to look statesmanlike, a change from Labour’s tray-on-a-pole:

Theresa May’s was made of cedar and designed (by her chief of staff Fiona Hill) to look more feminine:

Boris Johnson went for a darker wood and a sturdier design – aides knew he was fond of thumping it during speeches:

Liz Truss’s lectern was the disruptor – it was originally going to incorporate wood from trees representing every part of the UK, but that proved too expensive. As if this wasn’t enough of a metaphor for Trussonomics, the twisting support column (which like all lecterns hid a metal core for stability) reminded people of a Jenga tower.