Though Guido doesn’t normally give the Treasury spinners much credit  they do have some pretty stunning put-downs from time to time. Vince spent the weekend briefing those few hacks who haven’t yet seen through his act that, in an unprecedented step, the Treasury had opened talks between Vince and Nicholas MacPherson, the Permanent Secretary. In a “go-back-to-your-constituency” moment Vince even said he was “ready to serve“. It was a tad embarrassing then when Whitehall made it clear what was going on. They said they were amazed what old Vince got out of a twenty-minute meeting – which he requested – and they hosted “out of politeness“.

The senior moment unravelled very quickly and far from being unprecedented these meetings were sanctioned by the Cabinet Office as a courtesy to the opposition and took place before the 2005 election as well. It’s a shame the old soothsayer didn’t “foresee” this bit of spin unravelling…