During August, Westminster usually decamps to Tuscany. Not this year

Thanks to a team of eager new ministers wanting to show how busy they are, there will be a lot of work done this summer. But most of it will involve preparations for no-deal Brexit

The end of July and start of August are usually the dog days at Westminster. After the end-of-term frenzy which sees Whitehall disgorge a mountain of reports and statements – a process known to reporters as “putting out the trash” – SW1 generally descends into slumber as soon as the speaker declares the House adjourned for the summer.

Not this year.

This year, a new prime minister entered Downing Street just 26 hours before recess began. Ambitious Tory MPs were unable to slope off to “work in their constituencies” (or depart for a long summer in Tuscany or the Dordogne) in case they were summoned to take up a post in the hurriedly appointed new government. And since then, Boris Johnson has made a point of maintaining a very public display of activity in keeping with the dynamic image he wants for his administration.