The twists and turns of leaving the top job

Politics is a rough old trade and never rougher than when the electorate Pvicts the British prime minister from his official residence at 10 Downing Street. The moment the leader of the opposition wins a general election, like the Labour Party won last Thursday, the outgoing prime minister has to quit Downing Street forthwith.

Sometimes removal vans attend its back entrance even earlier if the writing is on the wall ahead of the official result. The opposite happens in the US where the incumbent has 11 weeks packing up time.