LONDON: In 2012, two years into his premiership, David Cameron had said that his Conservative party would be the first in Britain to have a Prime Minister of Indian-origin.

“We were the first party to have a woman Prime Minister (Margaret Thatcher) - (there has been a second one since in Theresa May) - we were the first party to have a Jewish Prime Minister in (Benjamin) Disraeli, and when I look at the talent behind me, I think we are going to be the first party to have a British Indian Prime Minister,” Mr Cameron had said.

In fact, historically persons of Indian origin in the United Kingdom felt more at home with the Labour Party and virtually voted en masse for it. Beginning with giving Keith Vaz a ticket in 1987, the Labour Party had steadily increased its number of MPs of Indian descent by 2010, at which point Cameron, an Indophile, decided to correct the imbalance by making two of the current cabinet ministers in the British Government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson—Priti Patel and Alok Sharma—first-time MPs.

Five years later, he awarded a seat to Mr Rishi Sunak, now Chancellor of the exchequer.

Speculation is mounting about the future of Mr Johnson - he having condoned sleaze among his colleagues, been allegedly corrupt himself, and 10 Downing Street, his office-cum-residence, apparently serially breaching Covid lockdown rules (which were legislated in Parliament and were therefore law) by having not exactly work gatherings in the premises last winter.