In 1992 a young footballer named Dion Dublin left my local team, Cambridge United, to take up one of the most coveted jobs in football – centre-forward at Manchester United. After a promising first few outings, disaster struck when he suffered a broken leg. By the time he was restored to fitness a genius named Eric Cantona had been signed and was strutting his stuff up front. Being a good lad, young Dion took it well enough. But it was basically game over for him at Old Trafford.
As Sajid Javid rose from the Commons back benches this week to ask Chancellor Rishi Sunak a question about his summer economic statement, I could not help but be reminded of Dion and Eric.
Sunak had just given yet another breathtakingly fluent, pitch-perfect performance. And while Javid was gracious enough in his tone and Sunak properly respectful in reply, there was no getting away from the fact that Javid, less than a year ago, had been appointed Chancellor by Boris.
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