As Boris Johnson faced the possibility of a no-confidence motion earlier this year, a large number of Tory MPs decided they would neither back him nor sack him. ‘Wait until the local elections,’ they said. The Prime Minister was chosen as party leader not because of popularity among his political peers (he has never commanded much loyalty in the Commons) but because he was seen to be the best at winning elections. If he lost his touch with voters, surely that would be proof it was time for a change? There is an obvious problem with this reasoning.

It has been wonderful to welcome seven refugees – and their four dogs – to my home in Suffolk. I’ve enjoyed getting to know Ukrainian food and picking up the basics of the language. It’s humbling living with three generations from one family who have escaped war with little more than the clothes on their backs. It brings perspective. They video-call family and friends left behind who live under the threat of bombardment, and it’s striking just how close to home this conflict is.

The right to buy The Prime Minister floated the idea of granting housing association tenants a blanket right to buy. How many social homes have been sold over the years? – Since 1980, 2.19m homes have been sold in England. The most sold in any one year was 167,123 in 1982/83 and the fewest was 8,474 in 2008/09. In 2020/21, 17,262 were sold. Although receipts from sales are supposed to fund replacement dwellings, this has not happened.