OPINION - Tory survivors of their electoral Somme face the Nigel Farage question

By the time Sir Keir Starmer spoke of the “sunlight of hope” in the early hours, it was more a matter for the Conservatives of who was left standing under the rubble of a Labour landslide than salvaging dignity. Rishi Sunak’s dejected expression said it all — holding his North Yorkshire seat, but leaving office as leader of a party in shock and anger at its dramatic electoral demise and a repudiation of his leadership and performance.