Future mixed for big dog who has lost his bite

At some point in the coming months, Britain will have six living former prime ministers. It’s an extraordinary manifestation of the political chaos of the last six years, but it does mean that Boris Johnson will not be short of advice, if he wants it.

The transition from one of the most demanding jobs on earth to a quiet life is far from easy, particularly for those who leave office young.

At 58, Johnson is nine years older than David Cameron was when he resigned. Nevertheless, he most likely has several decades ahead of him, having lost the most important job he will ever have. Sir John Major is now 79 and 25 years out of office.

Cameron has already shown the perils of a bored former PM.

He never quite ended up in the kind of dignified roles often filled by former leaders, like heading up Nato, and instead turned to lobbying, doing immense damage to his reputation through the Greensill scandal.

There was, for many years, a tradition of former PMS remaining in

Parliament and offering up their experience and wisdom, although it was tarnished by a recalcitrant Ted Heath spending 24 years grumbling from the backbenches.

Theresa May has stayed on, but is the only living former PM to have done so beyond the next election.

For Johnson, staying in Parliament seems unlikely. He is not a creature of Westminster, does not enjoy the culture or traditions and has made few if any friends with fellow MPS.

For Johnson, a major factor may well be money. He is reported to have complained about how little he makes as Prime Minister and took a substantial pay cut to take up office.

One possibility would be to follow in the footsteps of Sir Tony Blair, who has amassed a £50 million ($97.37m) fortune, and seek to become a policy guru and adviser to foreign governments. Even the Prime Minister’s staunchest allies, however, would be hard-pressed to say he has the policy-focused mind for such a role.

Instead, he might return to the lucrative public speaking gig he had before entering Downing Street, his fees boosted by three years in office.