Today’s position remains wholly untenable and I would be astonished if the Prime Minister herself did not recognise that. If she doesn’t those closest to her must tell her.

This pantomime around the leadership must stop now.

Jeremy Hunt has in a few short days impressively exercised his known personal qualities and has made the first critical contribution to restoring the primacy of serving the national interest. He should complete this work as our next Prime Minister.

In the circumstances, for others to advance their own claims will only be a damaging self-indulgence.

My parliamentary colleagues must put personal ambition and interest to one side and consider the wider interest over the next two years. The disingenuous explanation for Suella Braverman’s resignation and last night’s parliamentary team management must mark the low point in Conservative team performance, and we must set out to repair it now. Labour’s repair of its own capacity to govern from their era under Jeremy Corbyn is not yet complete and they need the time to address the obvious incoherence in their far from mature programme for government.

The period up to the next general election is an opportunity for Conservatives to restore our reputation for sound competent administration and economic management, and for the Labour alternative proposition to be properly built, before being examined by the media, markets and electorate.

But this work must start now.