cut and thrust

He loved the cut and thrust of Westminster politics - as well as the intrigue - and he could wield words with the best of them.

"We do know from the Covid era that remote meetings do lack the proper cut and thrust required in this political arena", he said.

For his critics, Southgate's team had become a caricature of the manager himself - all caution and consideration, no cut and thrust.

Some Conservatives may be trying to force a change of leader, but at Prime Minister's Questions we got a taste of the political cut and thrust we will see until the election, assuming Rishi Sunak remains in place.

It taught Sir Jim the cut and thrust of doing deals, before he made the leap into co-owning a business himself based on what would become a well-worn strategy.