The Palace of Westminster, in all its regal splendour, was the scene for Boris Johnson’s victory party yesterday afternoon.
The prime minister looked a man transformed as was carried to the despatch box on a wave of Tory cheers.
Buoyed by winning the biggest majority since the Thatcher-era, Mr Johnson used yesterday’s Queen’s Speech to mark out his plan for a decade in Downing Street.
A demoralised Labour Party could offer little resistance, with Jeremy Corbyn being the butt of many a joke and jeer from the enlarged Tory benches.
“Old Marley sits on the front bench opposite, chained and regretful – and that is just about Arsenal’s recent performance”, one Tory MP quipped during the speech.
The camera cut to Mr Corbyn, who was not amused by the jibe, before another Tory yelled to laughter: “Smile Jeremy, it won’t kill you!”
Labour MPs had little to smile about either, as Mr Corbyn used his speech to recite his unsuccessful election pitch.
Perhaps in a sign of things to come, the SNP offered the most visceral opposition yesterday and as they demanded the prime minister give Scotland a second independence referendum.
Mr Johnson, instead of pitching a defence of the union, played into the hands of the nationalists by looking at his phone during Ian Blackford’s speech – and then flippantly remarking that the SNP Westminster leader should say something more interesting if he wanted his attention, a remark that will no doubt appear on posters and leaflets in elections to come.
Mr Johnson, as many commentators have remarked, can pretty much do what he wants with this 80 seat majority and while yesterday offered a vision, the detail and delivery will be key in the years to come if he wants to hold onto to those Labour seats won in the north of England and stem support for independence in Scotland.