Britain’s briefest prime minister was George Canning in the early 19th century who lasted just 119 days. This was not just a display of the cold-eyed ruthlessness that lurks just below the clowning surface of this prime minister. The prime minister’s friends are predicting that Philip Hammond and other ex-members of the May government will be “a nightmare”. An early election would seek to exploit the honeymoon that most new prime ministers enjoy for a while. Get it wrong and history will record him not just as the briefest of prime ministers, but the most risible.

Source: The Guardian July 28, 2019 07:00 UTC