THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY

It’s grim for polar bears up north as global warming melts away their Arctic home.

But defence minister Mark “Bomber” Lancaster brings worse news. Climate change exposes the land under the ice and that could lead to war.

Or as Bomber puts it: “Competition for natural resources could present greater opportunity for international tension. Russia’s Arctic Command has increased its military presence.”

Whitehall models a lot of ‘what ifs’ but they’re usually top secret so Bomber may have dropped one by revealing this. I’ve heard another report predicting mayhem in the Middle East as the West becomes less reliant on oil.

Saudi Arabia could revert to the desert kingdom it once was, with unpredictable consequences.

You might thinks this is scaremongering.

But as we approach the centenary of the end of World War One, just remember how quickly that escalated.

It took just 37 days from a relatively minor terrorist incident in Sarajevo to the slaughter of 20 million people. Phillip Lee’s Tory colleagues think he harbours ambitions to be Prime Minister, a lofty goal for one so lowly.

Yet he hosts intimate dinners for MPs hoping for their support.

No one had heard of the justice minister until he quit on Tuesday over Brexit – which makes it unlikely we’ll hear of him again.

It’s like writing his own obituary to tell us someone is dead we didn’t know was alive.