Unity is the only way of keeping smirking Sir Keir out of No10

THESE are strange times. Has there ever before in human history been a political party which has begun to regret getting rid of its leader even before he has actually gone?

Watching Boris Johnson’s barnstorming farewell appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions, or examining his political record – packed with decisions and achievement – Tory MPs must increasingly be wondering what they have done. They must also be wondering why they did it.

It is perhaps a pity they did not think harder about this before stampeding heedlessly into a leadership contest which must now preoccupy the country for weeks. Yet who now even remembers the detailed cause of it, or could explain the actual issues involved?

Meanwhile the enemies of Mr Johnson’s patriotic, decisive, optimistic and pro-freedom style of government are delighted and cannot believe their luck. They hated his wit and his brio and his confidence, and they hated the way that their clumsy, ill-argued attacks simply bounced off him without effect. Now that his own party has done what they could not do and displaced him, they crow and they sneer. And yet they still fear him so much that they are trying to drive him out of Parliament altogether.

The House of Commons privileges committee could now force the Premier to face a byelection, thanks to a slippery change in the rules which allows him to be punished in this way for unintentionally misleading MPs. Let us hope that no such vindictive action is taken – though it is tempting to wonder how the voters of his constituency might respond to such a move, which has a strong whiff of a kangaroo court about it. Perhaps his foes are afraid he could somehow return to frustrate and defeat them in future, and will do anything to prevent that.

Many Tories currently hope for some sort of campaign to put him on the ballot for the leadership. Alas, this is a dream, not a practical option.

Party members preparing to vote must instead choose a successor who can swiftly repair the wounds caused by Mr Johnson’s removal, and present a firm united front against the smirking ranks of Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour

Party and his increasingly close Liberal Democrat allies.

Tory MPs, some of whom may have been foolishly persuaded to support plots against their leader, should understand that their only hope of survival in government lies in a resolute unity and the end of such plotting. As the campaign unfolds, The Mail on Sunday will be watching carefully to see which of the two final candidates shows the clearest understanding of the issues ahead of us and the best way of handling them.

But we will also be interested in wider and deeper political factors. Economic competence and experience are, of course, important, along with an understanding of what actually held together the campaign which smashed the Red Wall and gave the Conservatives their biggest majority since the days of Margaret Thatcher.

But we also place a high value on loyalty, unity and discipline, the not-so-secret weapons key to all political success. Plotting and backstabbing should not be encouraged or rewarded.

Sir Keir may be dull and uninspiring, but Tory infighting has given him a boost he could never have earned by his own actions. It may not be possible to keep Mr Johnson as PM, or to undo the damage of the last few weeks. But there is still a chance to rebuild Tory strength and resolve in time to keep Sir Keir and his party out of government at the next Election.