The Conservative leader is failing at the most essential task of opposition – looking fit to one day govern

In the absence of action, politicians can only be judged on their words. This is the perennial problem for opposition parties – how to persuade voters of your fitness to govern without access to levers of power. It is a challenge that is defeating Kemi Badenoch.

The Conservative leader has said little of substance. Her stances, so far, are all reactive gestures. She has committed to reversing some of Labour’s tax-and-spend decisions. She is demanding a public inquiry into historical child abuse cases on the grounds that previous inquiries failed to “expose those who turned a blind eye to grooming gangs”.