Last week’s much-trumpeted Anglo-US meeting has not reduced concerns about Ukraine, Nato or tariffs – or boosted confidence in the UK government

Most people I know were ­concerned about the prospect of a second Trump presidency; but we did not have a vote. However, those Republicans who elected him should have been mindful of the old Chinese proverb: be careful what you wish for.

A classic example has been provided recently in the columns of the New York Times. On 17 December, the rightwing columnist Bret Stephens wrote: “Here’s a thought for Trump’s perennial critics, including us on the right. Let’s enter the new year … by dropping the lurid comparisons to past dictators, by not sounding paranoid about … the ever-looming end of democracy.”