The euphoria of the early post-election days in No 10 has turned to bitterness and acrimony on a tragic scale
Almost a year ago, Boris Johnson threw a big party in Downing Street for his staff and the press. It was billed as the prime minister’s annual Christmas drinks but there were many more reasons for good cheer inside No 10.
Johnson had just won a stunning general election victory the week before, securing an 80-strong parliamentary majority, and he was still on cloud nine. So, too, were former leading lights of the Vote Leave team who had delivered Brexit for Johnson, then played key roles in the election win. These advisers, whom the prime minister had brought into No 10 after Theresa May’s departure, knew they had real power at last, in the form of a thumping mandate delivered by the people.
