Flippant, weary and woeful, Boris Johnson and his government blustered before a justly angry parliament

Far from being a ‘dead parliament’, as the attorney general foolishly described the Commons, the atmosphere was decidedly lively

So far from any grumpiness about being called back from their enforced holiday, our MPs spent their first day “back” from the prorogation that never was by putting on a showcase performance.

Minister after minister traipsed into the House of Commons to answer long, overdue questions about the prorogation, about the scathing Supreme Court judgment, about Operation Yellowhammer and Brexit readiness, about Iran and much else.

In the face of genuine, passionate and challenging questions from backbench MPs and, in particular, Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, Mr Johnson’s senior ministers were unforgivably flippant. Geoffrey Cox, the attorney general, seemed to think he was grandstanding at the Old Bailey, Rumpole-style, and failed to show any contrition or regret, either about the prorogation itself, or the legal advice he gave to the government that the move was legal.