The crashing gears of the juggernaut have made way for the cruise control of the family saloon. Gordon Brown’s approach on these set-piece Treasury occasions was to flatten everything before him. Alistair Darling takes the corners with the self-assurance of a Scottish bank manager. There were plenty of corners.

Mr Darling’s debut had been intended as the launch pad for a November election. A few days ago, excitable aides were predicting that Mr Brown would be heading for the Palace just as soon as his chancellor had sat down in the House of Commons. That, though, was before the prime minister decided – entirely indifferent as he was to the Tory surge in the opinion polls – that setting out a governing vision was more important than chasing votes.