The Brexit Party is about “far more, now, than just leaving the European Union”, says Nigel Farage. It is “about the very democratic system in our country”. In the run-up to the European elections in May only one of his 212 Facebook posts celebrated the virtues of Brexit; the rest were about the threat to democracy of ignoring the 2016 referendum result. The leaflets posted through doors by his party said: “Politics is broken. Let’s change it for good.” Instead of railing against immigration, its website now promises a “democratic earthquake” to turn “anger into hope”.

The populist anti-politics message that was always implicit in the Leave campaign is now the explicit anthem of the Brexiteers. Boris Johnson has promised to leave the EU on