Andrew Mitchell may have chosen to stay away from the Conservative conference, but his run-in with the police has still loomed large over the gathering. The Tories acknowledge that the affair has done lasting damage to the party's reputation, with a growing number of the view that the Chief Whip should fall on his sword. One cabinet minister tells the Telegraph: "It’s still doing a lot of harm and someone needs to put an end to it. There’s a chance that Andrew will do that himself, but people may have to talk to him."

At the same time, backbench MPs have written to Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 committee, to complain that Mitchell remains in post. Few now believe that he has the authority required to perform the role of Chief Whip. As David Davis shrewdly observed last week: "What does a Chief Whip have at his fingertips to deploy normally? Well, a mixture of charm, rewards, appeals to loyalty — all of those are diluted at the moment."

With the end of the conference season and the return of Parliament, Mitchell's future is likely to be resolved early next week. The chances of him resigning now appear at least as good as those of him surviving.