Take the “respect agenda”, currently engorging huge amounts of Whitehall time. This is essentially a hobbyhorse of the prime minister’s, bundling together lots of different issues - a vague description of unease that reminds some of us of John Major’s back to basics. In private, it makes some ministers tear out their hair: how long before every act of street yobbery or classroom misbehaviour is used to mock Labour for its latest failure? But what Tony wants, Tony gets. “He’s digging in, you know,” say the ministers.

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