If this is indeed the end of Boris Johnson’s political career, it is at least a fitting one. There is no precedent for a prime minister, or a former one, having been found guilty of deliberately misleading the Commons.
Understanding that he had been caught and was about to be punished, Johnson resorted to his trusted playbook. Bluster, humour and faux outrage were deployed to distract attention from the charges. But with his Trumpian attacks on the integrity of the most senior committee of the Commons, he not only increased his sentence but has handed Rishi Sunak the ammunition to ensure he has no chance of an early return to parliament.