Tmmediately after last week's local government elections all three major parties managed to draw some limited satisfaction from the results. Labour had hung on to some of the councils in its heartland that were supposedly under threat. The Tories just about succeeded in hitting the very modest targets they had set themselves―a triumph at least for the management of expectations. The Liberal Democrats made some impressive gains, but also suffered unexpected reverses. There seemed to be something there for everybody. But in the days after the poll, the body language of the three party leaders told a different story. The prime minister had more important things to think about; Iain Duncan Smith, the Conservative leader, had the relieved air of someone who's just scraped a pass in a tricky exam; Charles Kennedy, the Lib Dem leader, looked distinctly hangdog. Mr Kennedy has lost weight recently, which makes him seem gaunter and less convivial than in more carefree days. But he may also be suffering from the realisation that his party has failed to sustain the momentum it had after last year's general election.
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