Look at Clare Short. She did what she was told and helped the leadership trash a leftwing woman like Liz Davies. That made it harder for her to say no when Blair asked her not to resign over Iraq, to stay on and do some good, and made it hard for anyone to respect her when he did not need her any more and fired her.

Sadly, Clare has never impressed me. Hard-working. Yes. But in terms of intellectual rigour she always looked desperately out of her depth.

Which leaves her as a follower, not a leder. Tony's was simply the biggest, most-hopeful banner to follow and she willingly sacrificed most dignities and principles to that.

She, like Prescot, was there as a fig-leaf and not from merit.