A former colleague whom I respect enormously would (unwittingly) prompt giggles in our Times room at Westminster. With each of his succeeding political commentaries, we juniors would race each other to spot the four words of his signature-phrase: “It was always inevitable.”

Whatever had happened was (it seemed) always inevitable, and our colleague would explain why. The analysis was persuasive; but it was only after the event had occurred that it became, retrospectively, “always” inevitable. Things that didn’t happen were in retrospect “never likely” to have happened.

Well, what are the coming events that we ourselves will be wise about after the event? What (if it should happen) shall we later be telling people was “always inevitable”? And what (if it should not happen) shall