The fact that Darlington station was explicitly addressed in his statement is a great sign of how swiftly the Chancellor has mastered the detail of his brief.
The point here is the electoral trade-off between what could plausibly happen in the capital and the provinces – with Corbyn entering Downing Street in consequence.
Labour do less well when figures are based on information about who has probably turned out to vote are used. The party’s turnout, then, will be crucial to the result.
It is a relic of an out-of-date fashion for the big and artificial rather than the small, local and rooted.
Camden, Haringey, Lambeth, Wandsworth…. At the age of 50, they now seem natural units and alternatives are hard to imagine.