We also bumped into Caroline Lucas, the sole Green MP elected on 6 May.
Asked if she had wanted the “progressive alliance” that never was to succeed, she confirmed that she did, preferably on a case-by-case basis, but she would have offered full support if necessary.
Oddly, however, she says: “I never got the call.” Gordon Brown is said now to regret going to Scotland in those crucial days of coalition negotiations. It appears there is more that could have been done to create the momentum for a reunification of the Labour and Liberal movements.