Both the Tories and the SNP suffered catastrophic defeats – but only one of them is facing up to that

What I have just said applies, of course, to the Tories, a party that still seems in denial about its predicament. Too many of its MPs and members kid themselves that choosing a true believer leader with “real Tory” views is all that matters. By comparison, the thought that the Tory party itself may also need to change receives vanishingly brief attention. The autumn Tory conference will be obsessed with the leadership race, which has now seen Priti Patel knocked out in the first round of voting, while neglecting the scale of the July defeat.