The No. 10 operation’s decision to double down on the Starmer/Savile row after the Labour leader was accosted in the street by anti-vaxxers shows us how limited the options are for Boris Johnson as he tries to recover from the turmoil of the past few weeks.

The line from his allies and aides is that these protesters were shouting all manner of things, including about Savile but also about Julian Assange.