So the honeymoon is over – the shortest honeymoon enjoyed by any Government according to some.
But it was never going to be much of a honeymoon. It is hardly as if this Government was elected on the back of a wave of enthusiasm and hope for Sir Keir Starmer.
No, this Government was elected because the British public had given up on the Conservatives. The Conservative brand of economic competence and mature pragmatism had been trashed by a decade of drama.
Five Prime Ministers for heaven's sake. This wasn’t statesmanship. This was a soap opera. This Government was elected by less than 10 million votes. Lest we forget, that is fewer than the number of votes achieved by Jeremy Corbyn in 2019.
This Government better resembles what happens after a messy divorce and a rebound marriage in Las Vegas. The honeymoon was over as soon as the wedding was.
But opposition parties should not get too excited. The truth is that the public had very low expectations of this Government.
So the disappointment is less violent than was shown to the Conservatives in the last Parliament. The bold promises about getting Brexit done, levelling up and controlling our borders failed to deliver. Disillusion kicked in and after tales of bad behaviour the voters kicked back.
So what is the future for Starmer? He can have all the resets he wants but the truth is that right now the public isn’t paying attention. People have had enough of politics.
They just want to get on with their lives and have enough money to pay the bills. They think all politicians are rubbish and just want them out of their way.
And in that sense, this Government has the time to win the affection of the British public. Let's be frank there was not huge enthusiasm for David Cameron when he first became PM but he managed to win with more votes and a majority five years later.
But to do so requires the judgment and leadership to inspire the public trust. There are three things which have fatally wounded this Government in this regard.
The first is the Budget. The consequences of Rachel Reeves's decisions have yet to fully play out. But it isn’t rocket science to realise that if you increase the costs of hiring staff by hiking up employer NIC contributions, this is going to cost jobs. Our retail and hospitality sectors are already struggling and it is going to push some social care businesses over the edge.
Three things have fatally wounded Starmer...his honeymoon is officially over, says Dame Jackie Doyle-PriceGB News/Getty Images
The second is immigration. The public has lost confidence in the ability of the Government to manage immigration, and the latest figures will make them more disillusioned.
The fact that Starmer failed to mention this in his latest speech will simply lead them to conclude he doesn’t give a damn.
And the third thing is the strange case of Louise Haigh. Once governments have a whiff of dodgy behaviour about them they start to freefall.
Partygate, Paterson and Pincher did more to damage Boris Johnson than locking the country down for the best part of two years.
Kemi Badenoch was right to challenge Starmer on this at PMQs this week. His evasive and dismissive response showed he knows he is on weak ground too.The facts are these, though.
This Government has another four and a half years to run. The public knows this. They have switched off from Labour, but they have switched off from all of it.
And it will be some time before they re-engage. I have often said that politics is a game for tortoises, not hares. The best thing Conservatives can do is to enjoy Christmas and get battle fit for the long haul ahead.
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