Star comment: Theresa May's coronation has turned into a trial
The conference ought to have been her Coronation. Instead, Prime Minister Theresa May is fighting for her political life amid internecine squabbles at the Tory Party Conference.
And while she is unlikely to lose her role soon – the Conversatives are not daft enough to gift Jeremy Corbyn an election while he has the wind in his sails – her long-term prospects are bleak.
It might have been so different. When she went to the polls earlier this year, she looked set to secure the sort of Conservative hegemony last seen when Margaret Thatcher won in 1979.
And yet strong and stable turned into weak and wobbly, Corbyn showed he had the common touch and, try as she might, Mrs May found herself unable to put a leash on Boris.
It has been a chastening year for her. There have been two key areas of focus since she replaced David Cameron as Prime Minister: her botched snap election and Brexit.
And as Conservatives gather from across the UK, it is time for her to move the agenda on and show real leadership, rather than simply talk about it.
The Conservative Party needs new energy, it needs to re-engage, it needs to inspire and it needs to make people believe it in again. In order to achieve that, it must stop squabbling.
For as much as Boris Johnson talks about the Cabinet being like a nest of birds singing, it is clear some of those are hawks and vultures.
There should be new ideas and a willingness to change. There wasn’t much evidence of that yesterday, though.
The Conservatives kicked off the conference with more promises about delivering HS2, a railway few seem to want and that is prohibitively expensive, and their plan for a Northern Powerhouse.
Brexit remains the dominant issue but it is for Mrs May to manage that process while also improving our economic outlook, bringing about social cohesion, keeping us safe and helping us to compete on the global stage.
Yet even the most imaginative political commentators can see that the Conservatives are far from where they would wish to be and the party will need some new thinking if it is to see off the challenge from a reinvigorated Labour.
Setting a new agenda, making the case for compassionate capitalism, working harmoniously and seizing the centre ground of British politics ought to be near the top of their to-do list.
