The leader of the opposition has to be a grown-up. I'm not sure Badenoch can manage it

Not everyone's mind was on the fallout from the US election yesterday. A handful of Conservative grandees, including Theresa May and Norman Lamont, had sneaked into the Lords' seating gallery in the Commons to observe their latest saviour.

- John Grace

The woman who was going to bring them back from the abyss. To put meaning into their otherwise empty lives. They were a part of history. To see a new Tory leader slay Keir Starmer at prime minister's questions.

Starmer got things under way by congratulating Donald Trump on his victory and said he was looking forward to working with him. A lie, but what else could he say? He then welcomed Kemi Badenoch to her place, pointing out that she was his fourth Tory leader. She almost certainly won't be his last.

Up stepped Kemi Kaze, the Tory MPs willing her on. If you could survive on vibes alone then Badenoch was already a winner. And the opening sentence promised much. Confident. Assertive. She was proud to be leading the Conservative party and promised to work constructively with the government in the national interest.