It is commonly agreed the British Conservative Party has become more interesting, even if not more attractive, since the rapid and uncontested emergence of Mr Michael Howard as its leader. He is an able politician capable of delivering more telling blows than his predecessors on a Labour government indulged by weak opposition since it was first elected in 1997.
Last evening's announcement of Mr Howard's new shadow cabinet confirms the impression that he can bring new verve to the British parliamentary scene and a possible new direction to his hitherto divided and lacklustre party in the country as a whole. Only time and events will tell whether this is sufficient to change the course of British politics.
Mr Howard has chosen equally strong and able figures principally from the centrist mainstream of the party for the core jobs of shadow chancellor, home and foreign affairs, health and education, within a slimmed down shadow cabinet. Messrs Oliver Letwin, David Davis, Michael Ancram and Tim Yeo have the requisite political experience to punch their weight in parliamentary encounters, even if the very length of their time in opposition means they have not had commensurate ministerial office. With these appointments Mr Howard sends out a signal that his conservatism is centrally concerned with regaining political power rather than affirming dogmatic positions without widespread popular appeal to the British electorate.
This impression is strongly reinforced by the news that a small group of former leaders, together with the party's most prominent Europhile and leader manqué, Mr Kenneth Clark, is being appointed. They will advise Mr Howard, join the front bench and campaign throughout the country. Mr Clark's inclusion is on the basis that the issue of joining the euro, which has most deeply divided the Conservatives for the last decade, has now been parked politically by Labour's failure to make progress on it. This is clever politics indeed. It underlines the open disunity between Mr Tony Blair and Mr Gordon Brown, and creates an opportunity for the Tories to sidestep the issue for the rest of this parliamentary term. If it returns on a live basis Mr Clark will be free to campaign for his position. In the meantime the Conservatives as a whole are free to regroup without being continually undermined by their divisions on Europe. Their arguments in favour of a referendum on the EU constitutional treaty will stand.
If Mr Howard succeeds in restoring his party's parliamentary morale and countrywide organisation the face of British politics could change faster than many have expected. Labour is vulnerable to a more vibrant and alert opposition than it has had under Mr Howard's predecessors. It has yet to deliver on a range of its policies and faces a potentially lethal power struggle between Mr Blair and Mr Brown. Mr Howard could have luck on his side.