Jacob Rees-Mogg has been freed from the burden of collective responsibility and is back to doing what he does best: criticising government from the backbenches. Speaking to Krishnan Guru-Murthy on Channel 4 News last night, the former Business Secretary spoke out against fiscal drag and the absence of commitments on efficiency reforms. He added he was “simply making the case for conservatism”.

Unsurprisingly, Krishnan then asked about the prospect of re-joining the EU, citing OBR figures on the impact of Brexit. Jacob rightly pointed out that economic forecasts are often inaccurate, before saying Krishnan was “Just like Nicola Sturgeon” for seeking to go back on referendum results. He then reminded Krishnan of his expletive antics and commended the fact he made an apology. Krishnan was able to get through this interview without resorting to abuse. Clearly his time off has done wonders for his temperament.

Since last night Jeremy Hunt did have time to react to criticism from the right. Speaking to Sky News this morning Hunt said:

“There is nothing conservative about spending money you haven’t got. There is nothing conservative about not tackling inflation. There is nothing conservative about ducking difficult decisions… and that’s why this is a very conservative package”

If he says so…