Cameron finds his Falklands factor

No matter what qualms may exist within the damper side of the coalition, polls and assorted surveys show a goodly chunk of the electorate aligning with the majority view among Conservatives that Cameron did the business in Europe. Most of those interviewed readily admitted to understanding very little of how the UK veto over treaty changes may affect the country's future economic standing. The overall assessment is a positive one nevertheless.

Perhaps this was the reason why Nick Clegg seemed hard pressed this morning to explain the basis for his concern at a distancing from Brussels (and Strasbourg). The impression, somewhat manufactured by a media seeking out divisions, was that the deputy PM seemed mostly peeved at being publicly wrong-footed over a national policy stance. Viewers were left puzzling over whether Lib Dems in the cabinet had backed the veto or not - and what had changed for them to now condemn the move.

By comparison, the plaudits keep coming Cameron's way and the more that miscellaneous European governments and/or commentators express deep regret at Britain's increased isolationism, the more Churchillian the prime minister is depicted by his aides to the press.

None of this posturing can be sustained for too long of course. The finance sector is currently happy with the government's anti-regulatory position, but if markets and borrowing start to move in the wrong direction then pressure will build for the same kind of a back-door rearrangement that happened under Major, Blair and Brown.

For the time being, tories will be concentrate on how the events of the last week have all but wiped out Labour's notional lead. Mr Miliband will doubtlessly be doing the same thing.