That brings us back to the Farage win, and what to make of it: the alienation of the public from professional politicians is central to this. What the voters know – and has clearly been underestimated by the Westminster fraternity as a factor in the Ukip phenomenon – is that the EU is the ultimate politicians’ club. It has actually institutionalised contempt for public opinion by making the democratic will irrelevant. And it is that view that Mr Farage represents so well. He may look and sound like the guy down the pub who never stops ranting, but that is, for the moment, more in tune with the public mood than all those identical, smart-talking little boys doing their debating society tricks.