Ken Clarke knows a thing or two about liberal conservative government – Boris Johnson should listen to him

If the prime minister wants to act on his own fine words about healing the country and bringing people together, he can start by taking the advice of his former colleague

Boris Johnson cannot have expected Ken Clarke to act as a cheerleader for his “new”, “liberal”, “One Nation” government. The prime minister did, after all, expel him from the parliamentary Conservative Party; and Mr Clarke rewarded him by refusing to say how he voted in the general election.

Yet when Mr Clarke says that Mr Johnson has no plan for government, the prime minister should listen. Mr Clarke may be sceptical about Mr Johnson’s character, but he knows a thing or two about government, and he knows a thing or two about the kind of government that Mr Johnson claims to want.

In an interview with the BBC, Mr Clarke said of the prime minister: “He could turn out to be a very sound, moderate, One Nation Conservative.” But in order to do so, he would need a clear sense of direction and he would need to assert his leadership. At the moment, Mr Clarke said, “I don’t get the impression that politicians are in charge, together with someone who knows something about governing.”